Airlift director, Raja Krishna Menon has announced his next movie, Pippa. The film will star Ishaan Khatter, Mrunal Thakur and Priyanshu Painyuli in leading roles.
Pippa is based on the life of Brigadier Balram Singh Mehta, a war veteran who fought during the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war.
Ishaan Khatter will play the role of Brigadier Mehta of the 45th Cavalry tank squadron in this war drama. Ishaan said in a statement, “I am exhilarated to be a part of a film of such magnitude and importance and getting a chance to play the role of the suave and spirited tank commander Captain Balram Mehta is a true privilege.”
Ishaan announced the final cast of the film on his Instagram page. He wrote, “We’re coming with all guns blazing. Welcome to the #Pippa troop, fam 😉 @mrunalofficial2016 & @priyanshupainyuli @rajamenon #RonnieScrewvala #SiddharthRoyKapur @rsvpmovies @roykapurfilms (sic).”
On the other hand, Mrunal Thakur will be seen playing the role of Ishaan’s younger sister and Priyanshu Painyuli will play his elder brother in Pippa. Soni Razdan will play the role of their mother.
Producer Siddharth Roy Kapur said in a statement, “We were looking for great actors who would complement each other to create a believable family unit, and with Mrunal, Priyanshu and Ms. Razdan on board to join Ishaan, I am happy that we have more than achieved what we set out to do with the casting.”
Inspired by the 2016 book, The Burning Chaffees, written by the Brigadier himself, Pippa is written by Ravinder Randhawa, Tanmay Mohan and Raja Krishna Menon. The film gets its title from the war tank called the PT-76, popularly known as Pippa. It will show a heroic tank battle which took place in Garibpur in India, which eventually led to the liberation of Bangladesh.
Producer Ronnie Screwvala said about the film, “Pippa is a story that chronicles an Indian victory in 1971 through the eyes of the Mehta family and signing on fine actors to essay the members of this brave family was our foremost priority. I’m glad we have talented actors like Mrunal and Priyanshu on board, who along with Ishaan will spearhead this story of triumph that needs to be told.”