# Excel Entertainment

Excel Entertainment is an Indian production company, founded by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar in Mumbai in 1999. They mainly produce Hindi films.
Their debut production, Dil Chahta Hai, received critical acclaim and was a huge rage for the youth at that time. They won National Film Awards for both Dil Chahta Hai and Rock On!!. With productions such as Don, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Fukrey, Dil Dhadakne Do, and Raees, they are known for presenting unique characters and a contemporary style of cinema. Gully Boy was also India's official entry to the 92nd Academy Awards.
Excel Entertainment also ventured into distribution and distributed the Hindi dubbed versions of the 2018 Indian Kannada-language period action thriller, K.G.F: Chapter 1, and its sequel, K.G.F: Chapter 2, both starring Yash. They also distributed the 2019 Telugu epic period film, Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy, starring Chiranjeevi.

## History

The company's first production was the critically acclaimed, Dil Chahta Hai (2001), which marked the directorial debut of Farhan Akhtar. The film received a National Award in the category of Best Feature Film Hindi and was also screened at IFFI The company then went on to produce the war-drama, Lakshya (2004). While it was critically acclaimed, it did not fare well at the box-office. Over the years, it has developed a huge cult following and is considered to be one of the greatest coming-of-age films in Hindi cinema. Excel also produced Don (2006).
On 16 July 2021, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's sports drama, Toofaan, released directly on Amazon Prime Video. It starred Farhan Akhtar, Paresh Rawal, and Mrunal Thakur. It opened to highly mixed reviews. Bollywood Bubble stated Toofan, literal meaning ‘storm’ lives up to its name in all honestly. It is a film about life and choices.
The second collaboration of Farhan Akhtar and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra happened after their first successful film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. An action sports drama entertainer Toofaan released on July 16, 2021, on Amazon Prime Video starring Farhan Akhtar, Paresh Rawal, Mrunal Thakur. The film was directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra.
On 15 February 2021, Yudhra, starring Siddhant Chaturvedi, Malavika Mohanan and Raghav Juyal was announced. The film is being helmed by Ravi Udyawar, of Mom fame. Initially slated to be released in 2022, it was mired in reshoots and is now planned for a 2024 release.
On 11 August 2021, Jee Le Zaraa, starring Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Katrina Kaif and Alia Bhatt was announced. The female-centric road film will be directed by Farhan Akhtar, from a story written by Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti, and himself.

## Filmography

Key :
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Cast | Notes |
| 2001 | Dil Chahta Hai | Farhan Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani | Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Preity Zinta, Dimple Kapadia, Sonali Kulkarni | National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi, 7 Filmfare Awards, 7 Screen Awards, 4 IIFA Awards, 2 Zee Cine Awards |
| 2004 | Lakshya | Farhan Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani | Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, Om Puri, Boman Irani | Co-produced with UTV Motion Pictures, National Film Awards for Best Choreography - Mai Aisa Kyun Hoon, 2 Filmfare Awards |
| 2006 | Don | Farhan Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani | Shahrukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Arjun Rampal, Kareena Kapoor, Isha Koppikar, Boman Irani | Winner of Best Asian Film at Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival |
| 2007 | Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. | Reema Kagti | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Shabana Azmi, Boman Irani, Kay Kay Menon, Raima Sen, Amisha Patel, Karan Khanna, Vikram Chatwal, Sandhya Mridul, Diya Mirza, Ranvir Shorey, Abhay Deol, Minissha Lamba and Arjun Rampal | |
| 2007 | Positive | Farhan Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Arjun Mathur, Shabana Azmi and Boman Irani | Positive was a part of AIDS JaaGo (AIDS Awake), a series of four short films |
| 2008 | Rock On!! | Abhishek Kapoor | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Farhan Akhtar, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, Luke Kenny, Prachi Desai, Shahana Goswami | Co-produced with Big Pictures, National Film Awards for Best Feature Film and Best Supporting Actor, 7 Filmfare Awards, 6 Screen Awards, 3 IIFA Awards. |
| 2009 | Luck by Chance | Zoya Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Farhan Akhtar, Konkona Sen Sharma, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Isha Sharvani, Juhi Chawla, Sanjay Kapoor, Aly Khan, Sheebha Chadda and Hrithik Roshan | Co-produced with Big Pictures, 22 Actors made a guest appearance in the film |
| 2010 | Karthik Calling Karthik | Vijay Lalwani | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Farhan Akhtar, Deepika Padukone | Co-produced with Magic Beans Films |
| 2011 | Game | Abhinay Deo | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Abhishek Bachchan, Boman Irani, Anupam Kher, Jimmy Shergill, Kangana Ranaut, Shahana Goswami, Gauhar Khan and Sarah-Jane Dias | Co-produced with Eros International |
| 2011 | Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara | Zoya Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar, Abhay Deol, Katrina Kaif, Kalki Koechlin | Co-produced with Eros International, National Film Awards for Best Choreography and Best Audiography, 9 IIFA Awards, 7 Filmfare Awards, 6 Star Guild Awards, 4 Zee Cine Awards, 2 Mirchi Music Awards, 2 Screen Awards, 1 Stardust Awards, 1 Big Star Entertainment Awards |
| 2011 | Don 2 | Farhan Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Shah Rukh Khan | Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Boman Irani, Om Puri, Kunal Kapoor, Lara Dutta | Co-produced with Reliance Entertainment & Film Base Berlin, 2 Filmfare Awards, 2 Producers Film Guild Awards, 2 Screen Awards, 2 Lions Gold Awards, 1 ETC Bollywood Business Awards, 1 Zee Cine Awards |
| 2012 | Talaash | Reema Kagti | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Aamir Khan | Aamir Khan, Rani Mukerji, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Shernaz Patel | Co-Produced with Reliance Entertainment & Aamir Khan Productions, 1 Mirchi Music Award |
| 2013 | Fukrey | Mrighdeep Singh Lamba | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Ali Fazal, Varun Sharma, Richa Chadda, Priya Anand, Pankaj Tripathi and Vishakha Singh | 1 Screen Award, 1 Star Guild Award |
| 2015 | Bangistan | Karan Anshuman | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Riteish Deshmukh, Pulkit Samrat, Jacqueline Fernandez | Co-produced with Junglee Pictures |
| 2015 | Dil Dhadakne Do | Zoya Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Anil Kapoor, Shefali Shah, Priyanka Chopra, Ranveer Singh, Anushka Sharma and Farhan Akhtar | Co-produced with Junglee Pictures, 3 Stardust Awards, 2 Screen Awards, 1 Big Star Entertainment Award, 1 Filmfare Award, 1 IIFA Award, 1 Times of India Film Awards |
| 2016 | Baar Baar Dekho | Nitya Mehra | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Karan Johar | Sidharth Malhotra, Katrina Kaif | Co-produced with Eros International & Dharma Productions, 1 Zee Cine Awards |
| 2016 | Rock On 2 | Shujaat Saudagar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Farhan Akhtar, Arjun Rampal, Shraddha Kapoor | Co-produced with Eros International |
| 2017 | Raees | Rahul Dholakia | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Gauri Khan | Shah Rukh Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Mahira Khan | Co-Produced with Red Chillies Entertainment, 1 Mirchi Music Award, 1 Screen AWrds, 1 Zee Cine Awards, 1 Indian Recording Arts Awards |
| 2017 | Fukrey Returns | Mrighdeep Singh Lamba | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Ali Fazal, Varun Sharma, Richa Chadha, Priya Anand, Pankaj Tripathy and Vishakha Singh | |
| 2018 | 3 Storeys | Arjun Mukerjee | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Priya Sreedharan | Pulkit Samrat, Richa Chadda, Renuka Shahane, Masumeh Makhija, Sharman Joshi, Tarun Anand, Ankit Rathi and Aisha Ahmed | Co-produced with B4U Motion Pictures & Open Air Films |
| 2018 | Gold | Reema Kagti | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Akshay Kumar, Mouni Roy, Kunal Kapoor, Amit Sadh, Vineet Kumar Singh and Sunny Kaushal | |
| 2019 | Gully Boy | Zoya Akhtar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar | Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Vijay Verma, Kalki Koechlin, Vijay Raaz, Amruta Subhash | Co-produced with Tiger Baby Films, The film was selected as the Indian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards,13 Filmfare Awards, 12 Screen Awards, 9 Zee Cine Awards, 1 Mirchi Music Awards |
| 2021 | Hello Charlie | Pankaj Saraswat | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Jackie Shroff, Aadar Jain, Shlokka Pandit, Elnaaz Norouzi | Released on Amazon Prime Video |
| 2021 | Toofaan | Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra | Farhan Akhtar, Paresh Rawal, Mrunal Thakur | Co-produced with ROMP Pictures Released on Amazon Prime Video |
| 2022 | Sharmaji Namkeen | Hitesh Bhatia | Farhan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani, Honey Trehan, Abhishek Chaubey | Rishi Kapoor, Paresh Rawal | Co-produced with MacGuffin Pictures Released on Amazon Prime Video |
| 2022 | Phone Bhoot | Gurmmeet Singh | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Katrina Kaif, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ishaan Khatter | |
| 2023 | Friday Night Plan | Vatsal Neelakantan | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar and Kassim Jagmagia | Juhi Chawla, Babil Khan, Amrith Jayan, Medha Rana, Aadhya Anand, Ninad Kamat | Netflix film |
| 2023 | Fukrey 3 | Mrighdeep Singh Lamba | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Pulkit Samrat, Varun Sharma, Richa Chaddha, Manjot Singh, Pankaj Tripathi | |
| 2023 | Kho Gaye Hum Kahan | Arjun Singh Varain | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti | Adarsh Gourav, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Pandey | Netflix film |
| 2024 | Madgaon Express | Kunal Khemu | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Divyendu Sharma, Pratik Gandhi, Avinash Tiwary, Nora Fatehi | |
| 2024 | Boong | Lakshmipriya Devi | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Gugun Kipgen, Bala Hijam | Co-produced with Chalkboard Entertainment and Suitable Pictures; premiered in the Discovery section at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival in 2024. |
| 2024 | Yudhra | Ravi Udyawar | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Siddhant Chaturvedi, Malavika Mohanan | |
| 2024 | Agni | Rahul Dholakia | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar | Pratik Gandhi, Divyenndu, Saiyami Kher | Release on Amazon Prime Video |
| 2025 | Superboys of Malegaon | Reema Kagti | Ritesh Sidhwani, Farhan Akhtar, Zoya Akhtar, Reema Kagti | Adarsh Gourav, Shashank Arora, Vineet Kumar Singh, Riddhi Kumar | Theatrical release on 28 February 2025 |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Platform |
| 2017–2021 | Inside Edge | Amazon Prime Video |
| 2018–Present | Mirzapur | Amazon Prime Video |
| 2019–Present | Made in Heaven | Amazon Prime Video |
| 2019–Present | Fukrey Boyzzz | Discovery Kids |
| 2022 | Eternally Confused and Eager for Love | Netflix |
| 2023 | Dahaad | Amazon Prime Video |
| 2023 | Bambai Meri Jaan | Amazon Prime Video |
| 2025 | Dabba Cartel | Netflix |
| TBA | Andhera | Amazon Prime Video |

## Film distribution

| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Cast | Notes |
| 2018 | K.G.F: Chapter 1 | Prashanth Neel | Vijay Kiragandur | Yash, Srinidhi Shetty, Ramachandra Raju, Archana Jois, Anant Nag, Vasishta N. Simha and Mouni Roy | Hindi only |
| 2019 | Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy | Surender Reddy | Ram Charan, Konidela Production Company | Chiranjeevi, Amitabh Bachchan, Kiccha Sudeep, Jagapathi Babu, Vijay Sethupathi, Nayanthara, Tamannaah Bhatia and Ravi Kishan | Hindi only |
| 2022 | K.G.F: Chapter 2 | Prashanth Neel | Vijay Kirugandur | Yash, Sanjay Dutt, Raveena Tandon, Srinidhi Shetty | Hindi only |