Bollywood’s boy next door, Kartik Aaryan, has certainly been keeping busy. With the release of Shehzada and a goofy cameo in Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar earlier this year, 2023 has still more in store for the actor and his fans. Satyaprem Ki Katha, Aaryan’s newest film which also stars Kiara Advani, hits cinemas this Thursday. We thought we’d take this opportunity to run through the actor’s upcoming films and everything we know about them so far.
The Kartik-Kiara jodi that proved solid in last year’s blockbuster horror-comedy Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 returns to your screens with a love story. Directed by Sameer Vidwans and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, Satyaprem Ki Katha comes out on June 29. Billed as the ‘musical romance of the year,’ the trailer introduces us to Kartik Aaryan as an earnest Gujarati chokra who is saving himself for marriage, dreaming of finding true love. Audiences can expect stunning locales and memorable one-liners. The musical sequences in particular promise to be lavishly-costumed and well-choreographed. The film’s soundtrack includes a remix of the Ali Sethi and Shae Gill hit ‘Pasoori,’ which was the most googled song of 2022. While some fans were excited to hear Arijit Singh’s take on the song, others believe it has failed to capture the magic of the original.
Hard as it is to believe, it’s been a whole decade since Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor made us fall in love with their love in Aashiqui 2. Kartik Aaryan, who continues to live up to his moniker as the ‘king of sequels,’ has come on board the third instalment of the beloved musical franchise. Aashiqui 3, like its predecessor, will be backed by Mukesh Bhat’s Vishesh Films and Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series. What’s more, the film will be directed by Anurag Basu of Barfi and Ludo fame. Aashiqui 2’s soundtrack — composed by Jeet Gannguli, Mithoon and Ankit Tiwari — was an essential part of the film's identity. As such, fans can look forward to all-original music by Pritam in the Kartik Aaryan sequel.
Mukesh Bhatt has expressed his desire to work on the soundtrack of Aashiqui 3: “The songs have to be on par with the first two parts of the franchise. There cannot be any compromise on the music. It has to be as good, if not better than part 1 and 2.” The film is slated to release towards the end of 2023.
With the runaway success of Scoop and Scam 1992, director Hansal Mehta is on a roll. His Captain India will reportedly be about ‘one of the most successful rescue operations in Indian history.’ The film is set to feature Kartik Aaryan as a pilot, and will be produced by Ronnie Screwvala and Harman Baweja (who made his big comeback with Mehta’s Scoop earlier this month). The film’s tagline, as seen on its poster, is: ‘An ordinary man. An extraordinary mission.’ Unfortunately, not much else is known about the project, which was embroiled in a plagiarism scandal when it was first announced in July 2021. The makers of Operation Yemen, which is based on the 2015 Operation Raahat, accused Captain India of having a similar plot. Furthermore, it appears that production has been put on hold for the moment, given both Mehta and Aaryan’s busy schedules. Realistically, it might be a while before this film takes off.
One of the highest-grossing Hindi films of 2022, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 is all set to come back for a threequel. The team remains intact, with Anees Bazmee back as the director and Kartik Aaryan reprising his role as the eccentric Rooh Baba. On March 1, the actor dropped a short teaser for the film on his Instagram account.
The video in question opens with a slow pan across a corridor of the spooky haveli from Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. The overhead lamps flicker to darkness as the camera moves towards the large double doors that previously imprisoned Tabu’s M/Anjulika. We hear Kartik Aaryan in voice-over: “Kya laga, kahani khatam ho gayi hai? Darwaje toh bandh hotein hi hai taki ek din phir se khul sake (Did you think the story was over? Doors are only ever shut so that they can be opened once again).” We are then taken inside the abandoned chamber, littered with dry leaves, where Rooh Baba sits on a rocking chair, humming the sinister ‘Ami Je Tomar.’ He hints at the plot of the third film by saying “Mai aatmao se sirf baat hi nahi karta, aatmein meri andar aa bhi jaati hai (I don't only speak to spirits, they can also possess me)” before laughing maniacally. Aaryan’s caption lets us know that “Rooh Baba returns Diwali 2024.”
Director Kabir Khan, whose last outing was 83 — a sports drama tracing the 1983 Cricket World Cup — has teamed up with Kartik Aaryan for his next film. While the title and details of the project are still unknown, we do know that it will be an action film based on a true story. According to Khan, “This time around it's about an unknown hero, unlike 83 which showed living legends who we all know about. What compelled me to tell this story is that as Indians you'll be shocked, that how do we not know this person. How did we let someone who did all this fade away? That's the excitement.” Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala under his banner Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment, the film reportedly went on floors in May, commencing with an elaborate hand-to-hand combat sequence. Kartik Aaryan will be playing the lead, and casting for other characters is underway.