In early-August 2022, it was reported that Rosshan Andrrews visited Shahid Kapoor at his residence and narrated a script which impressed him.[7][8] Later, in November 2022, Rosshan Andrrews through his social media handles, confirmed that he would direct Shahid Kapoor in his upcoming film.[9][10] Touted to be an action thriller, the film marks the first collaboration between Andrews and Kapoor, and the first Hindi venture of Andrews.[11][12]
The film is produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur's Roy Kapur Films and Zee Studios.[13][14] The company made a public announcement on 25 May 2023, confirming the project.[15][16] The film's official title Deva was revealed on 24 October 2023, on the occasion of Dussehra, though it was previously reported to be named Koi Shaq.[17][18] Shariq Patel of Zee Studios revealed that he had been in separate discussions with Siddharth and Shahid over the years about different projects.[19] Somehow they didn't materialise and it took this film to come together and this is the first time that the Zee Studios have collaborated with both director and actor.[18] The film was made on a budget of ₹70 crore (US$8.1 million).[20] Kapoor charged ₹25 crore (US$2.9 million) as his remuneration for the film.[21][22]
Vishal Mishra would compose the songs, and background score by Jakes Bejoy.[33][34] Technicians include cinematographer Amit Roy, editorA. Sreekar Prasad, production designer Sandeep Ravade, and costume designers Niharika Jolly, Malavika Kashikar and Chandani Mehta.[35] Supreme Sundar, Abbas Ali Moghul, Anl Arasu, Parvez Shaikh, Vikram Dahiya were also hired as stunt directors.[36] Prior to the start of film production, Kapoor attended a special workshop in October 2023, in order to train physically and intensively for his role in the film.[37]
Casting
Mukesh Chhabra was the casting director.[38] Shahid Kapoor plays the role of a police officer in the film,[39][40] and sported a short hairstyle for his character, similar to his look in Haider (2014) since 10 years.[41][42] He said he is playing "a very hard character" in the film.[43] In May 2023, Pooja Hegde was reported to be the lead actress,[44] and her inclusion was confirmed by makers on 13 October 2023, on Hegde's birthday.[45] The makers wanted "a fresh casting" and finalised Hegde, marking her maiden collaboration with both Rosshan and Kapoor.[46]
Kubbra Sait joined the cast in early-November 2023,[47] and would play police officer role.[48] The film marks her second collaboration with Kapoor, after web series Farzi.[5] For her character, she underwent training for three months during the project's pre-production process, and also went through a workshop in Mumbai.[49] In late-November, Pavail Gulati joined the cast,[50] marking his first action film.[51] Gulati felt his role "demands physical and mental dedication".[52] For that he attended a special workshop in January 2024, in order to train physically and intensively for his role in the film.[53] For some challenging scenes involving hand-to-hand combat scenes featuring Gulati, Rosshan initially considered hiring a body double, but said he felt the body double's work was inauthentic and did it himself.[54]
Filming
South Mumbai, where most parts of the film were shot.
It was reported that the whole film would be shot in Mumbai, mostly in real places, with only a few small scenes shot on a set.[55]Principal photography commenced with a muhurat shot on 12 October 2023 with the film's cast and crew.[56] Shahid Kapoor and Pooja Hegde joined in this schedule, in Mumbai.[57] Later in November, Kubbra Sait and Pavail Gulati joined this schedule.[58][59] The schedule was extensively shot at Dongri Charnul, Mumbai.[60] The first schedule was wrapped in Mumbai on 21 December 2023.[61] In late-February stills were revealed by the official social media handles for the film under the tagline #OnTheSetsOfDeva.[62]
The second schedule of the film was begun in March 2024 in Mumbai, with Gulati joining the schedule.[63] Hegde joined the schedule on 14 March 2024.[64] On the next day, Kapoor joined the schedule on 15 March.[65] Kapoor shot some action and chasing scenes in this schedule in Mumbai.[66] Gulati was trained with the stunt directors before filming a hand-to-hand combat sequence in Mumbai in late March 2024.[67] Action scenes featuring Kapoor was shot in April 2024, at Dongri, Mumbai.[68] The next schedule began on 19 June, with an action sequence choreographed by Supreme Sundar being shot at Mumbai.[69] Hegde joined the final schedule early-July after completing first schedule of Retro.[70] Filming wrapped on 8 July 2024.[71][72] A footage of Kapoor, while filming a song was leaked and went viral.[73][74] In early-September 2024, a song titled "Bhasad Macha", featuring Kapoor and Hegde, choreographed by the duo Bosco–Caesar was shot in Mumbai for four days.[75][76] Entire principal photography wrapped on 4 September with a wrap-up party held in Mumbai.[77][78]
Post-production
After filming was completed, the film entered into an extensive post-production phase.[79] The VFX of the film were provided by Firefly Creative Studio, Identical Brains Studios, Old Monk Studio and The VFX Company.[80] Ken Metzker of Red Chillies Color did the colouring for the film. Subash Sahoo served as the sound designer.[81]
On 30 December 2024, the film received a U/A certificate from the Censor Board, with a finalised runtime of 156.53 minutes.[82]
The soundtrack album for Deva was composed by Vishal Mishra, in his first collaboration with Rosshan.[83] Lyrics are written by Raj Shekhar. The background score is composed by Jakes Bejoy, in his third collaboration with the director.[84] The music rights were bagged by Zee Music Company.[85] The track "Marji Cha Maalik" which featured in film's motion poster was released on 1 January 2025.[86][87]
The first single "Bhasad Macha" was released on 11 January 2025.[88]
The film's motion poster was released on 1 January 2025, coinciding with New Year.[89] The film's official teaser was released on 5 January 2025 at an event in Carter Road Amphitheatre, Bandra.[90] On 11 January 2025, Kapoor and Hegde headed to Dubai to perform "Bhasad Macha" and for promotional activities of the film at the opening ceremony of the 2025 International League T20.[91][92]
Release
Theatrical
Deva is scheduled to release on 31 January 2025.[93] It was earlier planned to release in theatres on 11 October 2024 (Dussehra), but was eventually postponed to 14 February 2025 (Valentine's Day).[94][95] Later the release was preponed by two weeks.
Home media
The digital streaming rights were acquired by Netflix.[96][97]
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