EKTA TO FINANCE SHAHID-ALIA STARRER

If all goes well, the undisputed Queen of Soaps will present the brand new Shahid Kapoor-Alia Bhatt starrer Udta Punjab, produced by Phantom Films.



Rumour has it that Balaji Motion Pictures will pump money to the tune of Rs 25-30 crore into the Shahid Kapoor-Alia Bhatt starrer Udta Punjab, directed by Abhishek Chaubey (of Ishqiya fame).

9xe.com has it that Phantom Films approached Ekta two or three months ago apropos this film, telling her that they were talking to Shahid and Alia to lead the cast.

There was one hitch - Balaji felt that the film had a lot of adult content and so could run into a problem with the Censor Board, eventually giving it a restricted audience.

And then came Pahlaj Nihalani's appointment as the new Censor Board Chairman. Pahlaj pulled out all stops to say that he would use very sharp scissors on any and all objectionable stuff.

So what changed the scenario?

Is it the reality that Pahlaj has now been compelled to go slow on his crusade that has driven Ekta to loosen her purse strings? Has the adult content been toned down? Time will tell, we know.

A source says, "Udta Punjab has a great script. The film should rock. Now Ekta is really looking forward to this project."