22 February,2025 07:36 AM IST | Mumbai | Priyanka Sharma
Sohum Shah
At one point in our conversation, Sohum Shah jokes, "Meri kundali mein likha hai that my films will take at least two-three years to be made." The actor-filmmaker's sentiment is understandable considering his film, Tumbbad (2018), was years in the making. His next, Crazxy, too has had a six-year journey. "Girish Kohli [director and writer] came to me with the script of Crazxy in 2019. The script was a page-turner. We knocked on many studios' doors, but no one was ready to make it, saying, âIt's a different kind of a film. We can't take that much risk.' Then COVID happened, and I realised I'd have to make it with my own money. We began the film in 2022, and now it's finally coming out," grins Shah.
The actor-producer remembers facing another round of scepticism when the thriller was complete, with many advising him to take the OTT route. "We anyway come once in three-four years on screen. So, this time, I decided humein toh theatres ke darshan karne hain. It could have been made on less budget, had I made it for OTT. But I didn't want to do that."
Among all his works, from Ship of Theseus (2013) to Dahaad (2023), Tumbbad holds a special place. The horror movie became a runaway hit when it re-released last year. Currently developing its sequel, Shah says, "Studios started telling me, âYou make Tumbbad 2 and we'll invest whatever you want.' This has never happened in my life before. Tumbbad opened up my life in 2018, but my life as an actor changed last year after the re-release." Expected to roll by 2025-end or early 2026, Tumbbad 2 will be helmed by Aadesh Prasad. Shah says he knew the horror film's potential right from its inception. "Tumbbad was supposed to be a standalone film, but I had a universe fleshed out in my mind even then. I knew I would make a sequel, prequel, and reboot. Work on Tumbbad 2 started in 2018 itself. We had a lot of ideas, but none of them were landing when expanded into screenplays. So, the writing took time."
