It seems that the rumors around one of Bollywood’s most anticipated partnerships have taken a surprising turn.
A Deccan Chronicle article claims that the highly anticipated movie “Tiger vs. Pathaan,” which was supposed to bring together Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan on screen, has been put on hold, at least for the time being, because of growing financial problems.
Officially shelved: “Tiger vs. Pathaan”
The ambitious crossover project, which was intended to be a significant installment in Yash Raj Films’ growing Spy Universe, has reportedly encountered financial difficulties mainly related to rising star compensation.
“Tiger Versus Pathaan may have been doable despite Yash Raj’s War 2 underperforming if both the Khans had agreed to take a discount,” according to an informed source. However, the Spy Universe appears to have hit a brick wall given the current costs, which are mostly the result of star fees.
Producer Aditya Chopra apparently got the idea for the movie soon after Pathaan’s 2023 box office triumph, hoping to unite the two film spies under director Siddharth Anand.
The article claims that conversations over the movie started as soon as Pathaan rekindled Hindi cinema’s theatrical momentum and excited fans who were hoping to witness the crossover between Salman Khan’s Tiger and Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan. Recent events, however, indicate that the project may have stagnated before going into production.
The main barrier now is financial viability. According to the report, Yash Raj Films is unable to pay Salman and Shah Rukh ₹100 crore apiece, which makes it more challenging to execute the project at the scale that was first planned. The Spy Universe’s large-scale action requirements and growing production costs led to a huge increase in the overall budget, according to industry sources cited in the paper.
The internet responds to the news
As soon as word spread about the alleged shelving, fans took to social media to voice their disappointment and discuss the economics of the industry.
“Even minor celebrities are requesting 50 crores if a movie makes 400 crores at the box office,” one user said. Both of these legendary stars will demand high salaries. What is the matter? (sic)
“Wow two biggest stars in Bollywood no production house willing to invest more than 350cr max that is the genuine reality… all the larger than life movies all be produced in SOUTH (sic)” was another response that mirrored general concerns over Bollywood’s production scale.
The internet responds to the shelving of “Tiger vs. Pathaan.”
A few fans expressed disapproval of the franchise’s overall creative direction. One remark said, “merely YRF Spy Universe might have been the trend setter (sic) if YRF had truly focused on making YRF Spy Universe properly with director who has credentials, script, and vfx as the top priority not merely focused on cash grabbing star power of actor to cash on commercial side.”
Another admirer posted, “That is heartbreaking 💔 Tiger vs. Pathaan was absolutely the biggest face-off Bollywood could provide,” in response to the news. It would have been momentous to see SRK and Salman together once more. I hope this is not the last word.
