There’s some exciting news in store for fans of Indian cinema as reports have confirmed that Jr NTR, the renowned actor who starred in the Oscar and Golden Globe-winning film RRR, will be joining Hrithik Roshan in War 2, a forthcoming installment in Yash Raj Films’ spy universe. The film will be helmed by Ayan Mukerji, who previously directed Disney’s Indian mythological superhero flick Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva, starring Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt in lead roles.
Currently, NTR Jr is busy shooting for his next film, tentatively titled NTR30, alongside Janhvi Kapoor. The highly-awaited movie is directed by Koratala Siva. Hailing from the Telugu-language film industry in South India, the actor has become a household name thanks to the massive success of RRR, which propelled him to international stardom. Despite his regional roots, his incredible acting skills have allowed him to transcend boundaries and win over audiences across the country and beyond.
The Yash Raj Films spy universe has become a major success in Indian cinema thanks to producer Aditya Chopra’s vision. Starting with the Tiger franchise, which starred Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in Ek Tha Tiger (2012) and Tiger Zinda Hai (2017), and continuing with War (2019), featuring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff, the franchise has already grossed around $300 million in total. The latest hit, Pathaan, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, and John Abraham, has set the bar even higher with a gross of $130 million.
For the unversed, in the spy universe created by producer Aditya Chopra, each film features a different set of characters and actors playing roles related to India’s intelligence agency, RAW, and Pakistan’s intelligence agency, ISI. In the Tiger franchise, Salman Khan stars as Avinash Singh Rathore, also known as Tiger, alongside Katrina Kaif as Zoya Humaini from Pakistan’s ISI. In War, Hrithik Roshan plays rogue RAW agent Kabir Dhaliwal, and Tiger Shroff portrays his protege Khalid Rahmani. Pathaan features SRK as exiled RAW agent Pathaan and Deepika Padukone as ISI agent Rubina Mohsin.
Some sources revealed, “NTR Jr is locking horns with Hrithik Roshan in ‘War 2.’ It’s going to be epic. Their battle of wits and their fierce showdown will definitely be an action spectacle to remember on the big screen. This move by Aditya Chopra enables ‘War 2’ to have the widest audience appeal for a Hindi film and it also widens the box office potential of the film. South India should come alive and connect at a more emotional level with the film because of the presence of their beloved superstar.”
“NTR Jr is one of the most respected and followed icons from South India. He is said to be extremely choosy about his films and if he has given the film a nod, it means ‘War 2’ is eclipsing the first film in terms of plot as well as scale. Hrithik Roshan vs NTR Jr. will be a fight to remember,” the source added. “Aditya Chopra had to take ‘War 2’ to a whole level in scale and NTR Jr’s inclusion has made this proposition extremely delicious for audiences.”
