If patience is an actor’s greatest virtue, it’s a filmmaker’s absolute superpower. No one knows this better than Abhinay Deo. After a grueling three-year wait to bring the Karisma Kapoor-led crime thriller Brown to screens, he’s finally soaking in the well-deserved applause. But the universe wasn’t done with him yet. Out of nowhere, life threw in a plot twist: right alongside the Brown buzz, a wave of nostalgia has suddenly revived the love for his 2013 television series 24 — the iconic Indian adaptation of Kiefer Sutherland’s real-time American thriller.
Abhinay Deo
Deo calls it a “sweet coincidence” that the Anil Kapoor-led thriller landed on streaming platforms barely two weeks before Brown premièred on Zee5. “It’s heartening and encouraging [to see] that even after 13 years, 24 is still one of the top 10 shows [on Jio+Hotstar]. I’m getting so many phone calls from people saying they had missed it then and are discovering it now,” he smiles. But Deo wasn’t one to rest on nostalgia. Even as 24 enjoyed a second innings, he was busy scripting the next leg for Brown.
A still from the television series ‘24’, which is now on streamers
He gambled by presenting Kapoor without make-up in a striking de-glam avatar, and it paid off. The filmmaker says he saw the role as an opportunity for the actor to reinvent herself. “I told her that if people see her in the same way they did 30 years back, they will be happy. But this was her second chance to do something that probably no one ever expected. She said, ‘I love it. I’m all game. Let’s do this’.” So, Kapoor didn’t any touch ups between shots.
Now, discussions are already underway about future instalments. “We are talking about season three of 24 and season two of Brown,” Deo reveals, while cautioning that nothing is official yet. For now, the filmmaker plans a brief pause before diving back into development. “The ideas never stop. Taking a break is important to streamline those thoughts,” he says.
On ‘Delhi Belly’ completing 15 years
A still from the television series ‘24’, which is now on streamers
The Imran Khan, Vir Das, and Kunaal Roy Kapur-starrer will celebrate its 15th anniversary on July 1. While Deo is eager to return with a sequel, he says the decision lies with producer Aamir Khan. Deo says, “I’m ready on one foot to go on the floor immediately as soon as Aamir calls me up for ‘Delhi Belly 2’.
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