Whenever the number of Coronavirus cases increases, normal life gets disrupted and this is especially true for the Bollywood industry. The governments are quick to shut down cinemas or restrict their operational timings to check the spread of the virus. Even the filming process is disrupted as usually, the rules are such that one can’t shoot at night or have a large number of people at a time. In the last 2 years, the shoots of many films have been affected due to such rules. Brahmastra, directed by Ayan Mukerji, is one such film whose shoot has repeatedly been delayed due to the Covid-19 waves.
It has now come to light that the filming of the Ranbir Kapoor-Alia Bhatt starrer is still not complete. As per a report in an entertainment daily a few days back, a line producer, Rati Shankar Tripathi said that Brahmastra’s shoot was supposed to take place in Varanasi in December. However, it was then postponed to January due to rising cases and it was then supposed to take place in Mumbai. However, as cases spiralled in the Maximum City as well, the shoot was pushed indefinitely ahead.
When contacted by this writer, Rati Shankar Tripathi confirmed that Brahmastra and the shoots of many other films have been affected in Uttar Pradesh due to Covid-19 and the election season. However, he confirmed that most of the shoot of the film is over and that only a patchwork shoot is remaining, which would not take more than a few days to be canned. He also revealed that the Brahmastra makers are now once again looking at shooting in Varanasi and that it’ll take place in February.
Interestingly, Brahmastra went on floors 4 years ago, in February 2018. In other words, the film will not enter its fifth year of filming.
Brahmastra’s shoot has repeatedly been delayed due to numerous reasons. In March-April 2021, the shoot was cancelled after Ranbir Kapoor tested positive. A few days later, Alia Bhatt, too, got infected. The makers also wished to shoot an elaborate song, consisting of many junior artists, but it couldn’t be done for a long time as crowding was not allowed for film shoots as part of Covid-prevention measures.
Besides Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt, Brahmastra also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Mouni Roy and Nagarjuna, and Shah Rukh Khan in a cameo. In December, the makers released an exciting motion poster of the film in a packed stadium in Delhi. The release date of the film was also unveiled – September 9, 2022. With a lot of films being delayed due to the third wave, it now remains to be seen if Brahmastra would make it to cinemas on the said date or whether its release will be postponed.
