Boney Kapoor set the industry abuzz roughly a year and a half ago when he announced that he was working on a sequel to his 2005 blockbuster comedy ‘No Entry’. The media was quick to congratulate him and the mood was overwhelmingly positive all around. With Hindi cinema riding high on the trend of franchises and sequels at the time, Boney’s announcement seemed like a surefire winner.
‘No Entry 2 ’ ropes in a big director and a fresh new cast
Anees Bazmee, who directed the original film, was doing very well after the success of ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’ and was one of the most popular directors in the industry at the time. He reportedly signed on for a large amount to be a part of the sequel, which was titled ‘No Entry Mein Entry’. As for the cast, the original stars Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor and Fardeen Khan were replaced by Varun Dhawan, Diljit Dosanjh and Arjun Kapoor.
Diljit’s exit throws the first spanner in No Entry 2’s works
However, things began to fall apart when Diljit, decided to walk out of the project. By that point, Boney and his team had allegedly already spent a considerable amount on location scouting both in India and abroad. And as is well known, when Boney travels, he rarely does so with a small team.
‘No Entry 2’ reveals Boney Kapoor’s taste for the extravagant
According to Free Press Journal, Boney is one of those who believes in extravagance; he always ensures that wherever he goes, he gets noticed. He always believes in doing things in style. He will travel first/business class with a retinue of personal assistants and a sizeable crew, even if it is a location-hunting trip within India or overseas.
Varun Dhawan’s box office woes add to No Entry 2’s trouble
The film ran into more trouble when Varun’s position at the box office became uncertain. His patriotic film ‘Border 2’, which came out in January this year, did give his career a lift, but his two back-to-back comedy flops, ‘Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari’ and ‘Hain Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai’, had badly hurt his image. Varun decided to quietly step away from Boney’s film on his own. In a casual chat with a media person, he said, “I need time to think. Not sharing any career updates now.”
Arjun Kapoor’s comeback complicates No Entry 2 further
With Arjun Kapoor looking to make a strong and well-calculated return to the big screen after his lengthy absence, he would need credible and popular co-stars by his side to give his career revival the push it needs. Boney, as his father, understands this better than anyone. But here is where things get tricky. Reports suggest that the ‘No Entry 2’ sequel has already burned a hole of around 30 crores in Boney’s pocket, and yet the film has little to nothing to show for all that spending.
‘No Entry 2’ remains a promising project stuck in uncertainty
At present, ‘No Entry Mein Entry’ continues to be a highly anticipated project whose theatrical release remains uncertain. Audiences who loved the original film are yet to receive any concrete assurance about when, or whether, this comedy sequel will arrive in cinemas.
