Director Shankar is currently going through one of the most difficult phases of his career. Once celebrated as one of Indian cinema’s biggest commercial filmmakers, the legendary director has recently faced severe backlash after back-to-back disasters like Indian 2 and Game Changer. Both films carried massive expectations and huge budgets, but their disappointing theatrical performance reportedly damaged not only Shankar’s market reputation but also caused heavy financial losses to producers and distributors.
The situation has become more complicated because today’s industry functions very differently compared to the era when Shankar dominated Indian cinema. Earlier, successful directors could take long gaps between projects and still command huge budgets. Producers and stars are now far more cautious and increasingly prefer working with directors currently delivering hits.
That reality has reportedly forced Shankar to rethink his strategy completely.
For several months, discussions suggested Shankar would next focus on his dream mega-budget historical epic Velpari planned across three parts. However, industry insiders now feel producers are hesitating to immediately invest hundreds of crores into such an ambitious project unless Shankar first proves he can still deliver a solid theatrical success.
At the same time, Shankar’s Indian 3 itself remains stuck in uncertainty. Reports suggest the film still requires a huge amount to complete the remaining work, while producers are allegedly reluctant to invest further after the disastrous performance of Indian 2. Even OTT platforms have reportedly rejected to buy the film for a direct OTT release.
Because of these pressures, Shankar is now reportedly planning something completely different from his usual style.
According to ongoing industry talk, before beginning Velpaari, the director may first make a fast-paced action thriller with a much tighter budget and quicker production timeline. Unlike his usual grand visual spectacles, the film is said to focus more on screenplay, tension, and sharp storytelling. Reports suggest discussions are already happening with two younger mid-range heroes for the project.
The strategy reportedly is simple: complete the film quickly, deliver a commercial success, regain industry confidence, and then move toward Velpari from a much stronger position.
Now, the big question is whether Shankar can stage one of Indian cinema’s biggest comebacks. Very few filmmakers in their 60s have managed to recover strongly after delivering multiple major disasters, especially in an industry where audience tastes and commercial trends are evolving rapidly.
