Priyanka Chopra To Deepika Padukone: Actors Who Are Producing Commendable Content

The new era of cinema, shaped largely by OTT and an audience that is recipient to out-of-the-box stories and characters, has made sure that women in films finally get their due. Not only are we seeing a sharp rise in women-centric stories, female actors are now getting meatier roles even in films led by men. But not just before the camera, participation of women in the filmmaking process is picking up the pace too.

While we have filmmakers like Zoya Akhtar, Meghna Gulzar, Alankrita Shrivastava, Reema Kagti and Leena Yadav, who are running the show, it must be noted that several leading women actors today have their own production houses, so that they can work on projects that they connect with.

Mind you, these women do not always feature in the films they produce, and their production work isn't limited to Bollywood films. For instance, Priyanka Chopra chose to produce a Marathi film named Ventilator, in which she didn't act. Similarly, Kangana Ranaut is producing Tiku Weds Sheru, starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur.

Production Companies Owned By Female Actors:

1. Priyanka Chopra

Purple Pebble Pictures was founded by Priyanka Chopra with the goal is to make low-budget films while also encouraging emerging talent, including authors, actors, directors, and technicians.

Projects: In 2016, the production house released the critically acclaimed comedy-drama Ventilator, which received a slew of awards, including three National Film Awards. Paani, the studio's fourth Marathi film, won the National Film Award for Best Film on Environmental Conservation and Preservation in 2019. In the same year, PPP also released The Sky Is Pink, starring Chopra and Farhan Akhtar.

2. Alia Bhatt

Alia Bhatt in a still from Dear Zindagi

Actor Alia Bhatt launched her production house Eternal Sunshine Productions last year in March. The production house seeks to tell happy, warm, fuzzy, real, and timeless tales.

Projects: The first film being produced under Bhatt's banner is titled Darlings, a comedy-drama film directed by Jasmeet K Reen and co-produced by Gauri Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment. Alia Bhatt will be leading the film, along with Shefali Shah and actors Vijay Varma and Roshan Mathew will feature in key roles. The film is expected to release on Netflix in 2022.

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3. Anushka Sharma

Anushka Sharma and her brother Karnesh Ssharma established Clean Slate Filmz in 2015, by producing a thriller on honour killing, featuring the actor herself in the lead. 

Projects: NH10 (2015), Phillauri (2017), and Pari (2018) are a few of the films made under Clean Slate Filmz banner. Paatal Lok, an Amazon Prime Series, and Bulbbul, a Netflix Original Film, were both produced by her production house in 2020. Two more projects are expected to be released in 2022 under this production house, one of which is Chakda Xpress,  directed by Prosit Roy. The film is inspired by the life and times of Indian woman cricketer Jhulan Goswami.

4. Deepika Padukone

In 2018, Deepika Padukone launched her own production company, Ka Productions. The actor stated in one of her interviews that the goal of her production company is to back meaningful stories with worldwide appeal, and the upcoming movie is in line with that approach.

Projects: Ka Production has produced Chhapaak (2020) and 83 ( 2021) so far, and Padukone also acted in both films. The project being made under Ka Production's banner is a cross-cultural romantic comedy to be developed by STXfilms, a division of Eros STX Global Corporation, in 2021. Not much is known about the casting of the film as of yet.

5. Kangana Ranaut

Kangana Ranaut

Kangana Ranaut launched her production banner Manikarnika Films last year, named after the title of her 2019 film, Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi.

Projects: Manikarnika Films is stepping into the digital domain with Tiku Weds Sheru, which is being led by Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur.

6. Taapsee Pannu

Taapsee Pannu

Outsiders Films, which Taapsee Pannu co-owns with Pranjal Khandhdiya, a content developer and producer for over 20 years, hopes to give back to the business and empower talent who, like Pannu herself, are striving for a breakthrough.

Suggested Reading: Revisiting Some Of Madhuri Dixit’s Most Powerful Performances

Projects: Pannu has announced her debut production film, Blurr, which is billed as an "edge-of-the-seat thriller." The project will be directed by Ajay Bahl, who has previously worked on films such as BA Pass and Section 375.

7. Madhuri Dixit

Madhuri Dixit in The Fame Game

Shriram Nene and Madhuri Dixit co-founded RnM Moving Pictures, which comprises five verticals: entertainment, Health, lifestyle, interactive and gaming, all of which allow for synergy through innovation, interaction and content development.

Projects: RnM Moving Pictures is reportedly working on an international project with Priyanka Chopra's Purple Pebble Pictures. Dixit also produced Marathi films Bucket List (2018)  and 15th August (2019), which are both available for viewing on OTT.

8. Dia Mirza

Dia Mirza launched her production company, Born Free Entertainment, in 2011.

Projects: Her first film, Love Breakups Zindagi, was released in 2011, followed by the Vidya Balan-starrer Bobby Jasoos in 2014. The most recent project was an OTT series called Mind the Malhotras, which premiered in 2019.