Several reports have been making the rounds that Karan Johar's upcoming directorial Takht has been shelved. The filmmaker had gone for recce as well and the period drama was set to go on floors in 2020. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, Takht got delayed indefinitely. Soon after, it was being said that the film is not delayed but shelved altogether. However, Karan denied the reports and said the film is very much on.
KJo told Spotboye, "Takht is not shelved. It’s just delayed." The period drama set against the backdrop of Mughal Era stars Anil Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Vicky Kaushal, Bhumi Pednekar and Janhvi Kapoor in the lead roles.
Earlier, talking about the film being shelved, a source had told Bollywood Hungama, "There are several reasons why it has happened. To begin with, it’s too costly a film. Its budget is expected to be around Rs. 250-300 crores. Like every other producer, even Karan had to bear losses due to COVID-19. Also, his expensive films like Brahmastra and Liger are already in production or awaiting release, along with his mid-sized ones like Shershaah, Dostana 2, Jug Jugg Jeeyo and Shakun Batra’s next. Adding Takht to this list won’t be a good idea."
The source added, "Takht is based on Mughal history. The current political climate is volatile and you never know when things can get ugly. We all saw what happened with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat (2018). Karan felt that there’s no way he can risk taking such a project in such times as a lot of money would then be at stake. As a result, Karan Johar has decided to shelve Takht for now. He might revive the project maybe after a couple of years."
