A television set that appears to know a family’s future. A stranger whose commands turn a holiday into a nightmare. Horror has given R. Madhavan some particularly unsettling company. His next project takes him back into that territory, this time with Chhorii director Vishal Furia.
The actor will headline an untitled horror feature produced by Rohit Ranjan under Frostlit Production Limited. In a statement reported by IANS on 31 October, Furia said Madhavan had been his first choice for the role and was already engaging with the film’s world.
A Return to Domestic Horror
Furia’s enthusiasm centres on the actor’s understanding of the genre. Calling Madhavan his “first and only choice”, the director singled out 13B as a personal favourite. He also pointed to Madhavan’s experience beyond acting, as a writer, director and producer.
Released in 2009 and directed by Vikram Kumar, 13B: Fear Has a New Address follows a man whose newly purchased apartment becomes the setting for a supernatural mystery. A television soap appears to anticipate what will happen to his family. Its premise locates fear inside a familiar routine: sitting at home, watching a screen.
Shaitaan, released in 2024, takes a different route into domestic terror. A family’s getaway is disrupted when an intruder gains control over their teenage daughter. Madhavan stars alongside Ajay Devgn and Jyothika in a story built around the loss of safety and control.
Furia brings his own experience of vulnerable households to the collaboration. In Chhorii, a pregnant woman and her husband leave the city for a remote house surrounded by sugarcane fields. What appears to offer refuge becomes a source of dread.
The new film’s title, release date and plot have not yet been announced. Furia has said he wants its fear to stay with viewers after the film ends. Madhavan’s move from the threatened family man of 13B to the threatening outsider of Shaitaan gives the collaboration a particularly varied horror history to draw upon.