Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan will star in and co-produce an Indian adaptation of multiple Oscar-winning fantasy-drama “Forrest Gump.” It will go by the title “Lal Singh Chaddha.”
Khan announced his involvement on Thursday at a press event in Mumbai held for his 54th birthday. Aamir Khan Productions will co-produce alongside Viacom 18 Motion Pictures. Advait Chandan, who was the first assistant director on AKP’s “Dhobi Ghat” and debuted as director with “Secret Superstar,” will direct.
Khan said that principal photography would start in October, after six months of preparation. The film will release in 2020.
“I have always loved “Forrest Gump” as a script,” said Khan. “It is a wonderful story about this character. It is a life-affirming story. It is a feel good film. It is a film for the whole family.”
Khan’s last outing as an actor, “Thugs of Hindostan,” was a box office disappointment in 2018.
His “Dangal” is India’s all-time highest worldwide box office grosser with global earnings of more than $300 million, including $193 million in China. Khan has two more films in India’s top 10 “Secret Superstar” and “PK.”
Released in 1994, Paramount Pictures’ “Forrest Gump” won six Oscars, including best picture, best actor for Tom Hanks, best director for Robert Zemeckis, and adapted screenplay, editing and visual effects.