Zee Studios was founded in 2012 and was formerly known as
Essel Vision Productions. Before the establishment of Zee Studios, films were produced under the name Zee Telefilms.
Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, released in 2001, directed by
Anil Sharma and starring
Sunny Deol and
Ameesha Patel, was one of the first films produced by Zee Telefilms. The film was declared an All-Time Blockbuster by
Box Office India and ranked among the top 3 Indian films in all-time highest footfalls since the 1990s.
2015–2020 The first-ever film produced under the banner of Zee Studios was
Sanjay Gupta’s thriller suspense
Jazbaa in the year 2015, which starred
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan alongside
Irrfan Khan and
Shabana Azmi. For her performance in the film, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan won the Stardust Award for Power-Packed Performance of the Year (2015). In the same year (2015), Zee Studios forayed into regional cinema with a Marathi film,
Katyar Kaljat Ghusali, an epic musical drama. It starred
Shankar Mahadevan,
Sachin Pilgaonkar,
Subodh Bhave,
Pushkar Shrotri,
Mrunmayee Deshpande and
Amruta Khanvilkar in the lead roles. The film marked the directorial debut of Subodh Bhave, the theatrical acting debut of Shankar Mahadevan, and
Sakshi Tanwar's
Marathi film debut. The critics regarded the film as a rich treasure of music and was also a huge success at the box office. The film won the National Award for Best Male Playback Singer (
Mahesh Kale).
Katyar Kaljat Ghusali was selected to be screened at the 46th
International Film Festival of India in
Goa and was considered for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (
UNESCO) Fellini medal that year. In 2016 the company produced
Natsamrat starring
Nana Patekar and
Medha Manjrekar, which portrayed a tragic story of a stage actor. In the same year, the studio also released the Marathi-language romantic tragedy film
Sairat, directed and produced by
Nagraj Manjule. It was lauded by media outlets such as
The Hindu,
The Wire,
HuffPost,
The Quint, and more, and highly appreciated by critics. For the first time in the history of the Marathi film industry, three songs for the film were recorded at the Sony Scoring Stage in
Los Angeles. The production included 66 instrumentalists at an expenditure of over Rs. 75 lakhs.
Sairat's music went on to become a sensation throughout the country after the release of the film. The film received several accolades both regionally and nationally, including 11 awards at the
2017 Filmfare Marathi Awards. It won Best Film, Best Director (
Nagraj Manjule), Best Actress (
Rinku Rajguru), and Best Music Album at Filmfare. Rinku Rajguru and
Akash Thosar won in the best debut female and male categories, respectively. The film also premiered at the
66th Berlin International Film Festival, where it received a standing ovation. Rajguru received the National Film Award – Special Mention at the
63rd National Film Awards.
Sairat is the highest-grossing Marathi movie to date. In the following year, Zee Studios witnessed success with its Marathi features;
Ti Saddhya Kay Karte, a Marathi-language romantic drama directed by
Satish Rajwade.
Chi Va Chi Sau Ka, a Marathi-language comedy-drama, ran for over 100 days in many Maharashtra cities.
Faster Fene, produced by
Riteish Deshmukh, Genelia Deshmukh, and Mangesh Kulkarni and starring
Girish Kulkarni, was another Marathi language film co-produced by the company that did well in Maharashtra. In its Hindi line-up, the studio released
Mom, starring
Sridevi in the lead role, which received rave reviews from critics. In October 2017, the company released a musical drama,
Secret Superstar, starring
Aamir Khan and
Zaira Wasim, in 1,100 theatres and on 28,401 screens worldwide, with 1090 screens overseas. Soon after its release, the film went on to become one of the most profitable films of all time. The film is also the highest-grossing Indian film featuring a female protagonist, the highest-grossing Hindi film of 2017, the seventh-highest-grossing Indian film worldwide, and the second-highest-grossing Indian film overseas. Overall the film won three
Filmfare Awards, including Best Actress (Critics) for Zaira Wasim, Best Supporting Actress for Vij, and Best Playback Singer (Female) for
Meghna Mishra. Zaira Wasim also won the National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement for her performance in the film. The company also released
Qarib Qarib Singlle the same year starring
Irrfan Khan and debuting in Hindi Cinema, Malayalam actress
Parvathy Thiruvothu, which received favorable reviews from critics. Meanwhile, owing to the rise of over-the-top, subscription-based media services,
Zee Entertainment launched its video streaming service on February 14, 2018.
ZEE5 would use this to stream all Zee Entertainment content, from films to shows. Zee Studios commenced the year 2018 by releasing the Marathi comedy-drama,
Gulabjaam, which performed averagely in the cinemas and went on to stream on ZEE5. The company also produced
Beyond the Clouds, which was the grown-up version of
Majid Majidi's previously directed film,
Children of Heaven (1997). The movie was released in 2 phases; it was released overseas in 2017, premiering at the 2017 BFI London Film Festival, the
22nd Busan International Film Festival, the 14th Dubai International Film Festival, the 5th International Bosphorus Film Festival, the 29th Palm Springs International Film Festival, and the 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), while the Indian theatrical release took place on April 20, 2018. The studio also produced
Dhadak, Hindi-language remake of
Sairat, which became a commercial hit, introducing two actors,
Ishaan Khatter and
Janhvi Kapoor. Then came
Paltan, which received positive reviews from the families of the soldiers, but the audience and critics found the film's execution largely ineffective for a war film and an extremely long runtime. Two successes for Zee Studios came in the middle of the year: one from
Veere Di Wedding, which emerged as the fifth-highest-grossing Hindi film of the year and the highest for a film featuring female leads. The other was
Raazi, which became the second commercially successful film with a female lead to join the ₹ 100 crore club in India. At the
64th Filmfare Awards, Raazi received 15 nominations and won 5 awards, including Best Film, Best Director (
Meghna Gulzar), and Best Actress (
Alia Bhatt).
Mulk, a legal drama released later that year, received positive reviews and won a Filmfare Award in the category of ‘Best Story’. Zee Studios also distributed
Gold, a period sports film starring
Akshay Kumar, with a budget of ₹ 61 crores, which ended up crossing the ₹ 100 crore mark at the box office. Zee Studios produced a wide range of films in 2019
Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi performed well both nationally and internationally and became one of the highest-grossing women-centric films in India.
Kangana Ranaut's portrayal of
Rani Lakshmi Bai in the film garnered critical acclaim, winning her the National Film Award for Best Actress at the
67th National Film Awards. The film was selected for the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival and was screened at the Kashi Indian International Film Festival, Itanagar International Film Festival, and at the Indian Embassy in Lebanon under the
Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav event. The company also produced the romantic comedy-drama,
Kala Shah Kala in Punjabi. It was well-received and rapidly rose to commercial success. It currently ranks as the 21st-highest-earning Punjabi movie.
Kesari was another hit film produced and distributed internationally by the company. Throughout the year, the studio produced films like
Rampaat,
Pailwaan (Hindi dubbed), and
Nerkonda Paarvai, which performed commercially well. They also produced a film named,
The Tashkent Files, a thriller about the death of former Indian Prime Minister
Lal Bahadur Shastri. Another well-received film was
Anubhav Sinha's directorial,
Article 15, which was the opening film for the 10th edition of the London Indian Film Festival and has won 3
Filmfare Awards- Best Film Critic (Anubhav Sinha), Best Actor Critic (
Ayushmann Khurrana) and Best Story (Anubhav Sinha and Gaurav Solanki). At the end of the year, the studio came out with the lighthearted comedy-drama
Good Newwz which became the 5th highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2019. In 2020, Zee Studios released most of its films on OTT, due to the safety measures for the then-ongoing pandemic, COVID-19. It included movies like
Hacked,
Bhoot – Part One: The Haunted Ship,
Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari,
Khaali Peeli, and
Solo Brathuke So Better.
2021–present 2021 was the year when Zee Studios decided to deliberately invest in more regional cinema. The company distributed one Telugu political drama,
Republic, and a Kannada-language crime thriller film
Drishya 2, which was a remake of the 2021 Malayalam film
Drishyam 2 and was regarded as one of the important movies in its line-up that attracted family audiences. The company also produced three Punjabi-language films, namely
Qismat 2,
Puaada, and
Fuffad Ji, and all three were hit. Among the three films, Qismat 2 was a sleeper hit that became one of the 15 highest- grossing Punjabi films of all time. The year gave Zee Studios some good releases, including well-performing
Thalaivii, a film based on the life of Indian actress-politician
J. Jayalalithaa and
Antim: The Final Truth and,
Radhe, starring
Salman Khan. 2022 was a very successful year for Zee Studios. The year began with
The Kashmir Files, directed by
Vivek Agnihotri, which became one of the most successful Hindi films of all time, and the 3rd highest-grossing Hindi film of 2022 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in
India, despite receiving mixed reviews. The film was also an official selection at the
53rd International Film Festival of India and was shortlisted for the prestigious
Switzerland International Film Festival. In 2022, the company collaborated with
Annapurna Studios to produce the Telugu-language supernatural action drama
Bangarraju, directed by
Kalyan Krishna. It opened to mixed reviews, mostly positive, and was declared a success at the box office. The company also produced a Tamil language action thriller,
Valimai, that crossed the 100-crore mark in the Indian market. The studio also produced and distributed
Rashtra Kavach Om, which was in theatres and then subsequently released on
ZEE5.
Raksha Bandhan, directed by
Aanand L. Rai and starring
Akshay Kumar and
Bhumi Pednekar, received mixed reviews from critics but remained commercially unsuccessful. On the other hand,
Rocket Gang, produced by Zee Studios, was a poor performer, critically and commercially. But Punjabi films like -
Saunkan Saunkne, Main Viyah Nahi Karona Tere Naal,
Ghund Kadh Le Ni Sohreyan Da Pind Aa Gaya, and Teri Meri Gal Ban Gayi. In the same year, the company also distributed a horde of Bollywood movies like-
Jhund,
Janhit Mein Jaari,
Goodbye, and
Ram Setu. Zee Studios also distributed two Kannada films-
Vikrant Rona and
Head Bush and one Marathi film Bhaubali. The studio wrapped the year with two thrillers - one released in cinemas and another on the OTT. The first was the survival thriller
Mili, a remake of the 2019 Malayalam-language film Helen, co-produced by
Boney Kapoor. The film received mixed reviews from critics, although garnering praises for
Janhvi Kapoor's performance. Zee Studios also produced a Telugu movie,
Itlu Maredumilli Prajaneekam and a Kannada film titled
Vedha. Zee Studios started 2023 on a bright note with its new release
Lost, starring
Yami Gautam, opening at the Chicago South Asian Film Festival,
Manoj Bajpayee starrer Hindi film Joram's official selection at the
52nd International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR). Along with this, the company also gave multiple films early in the year which includes,
H. Vinoth’s Tamil heist thriller
Thunivu, starring
Ajith Kumar, followed by Punjabi comedy-drama film,
Mitran Da Naa Chalda, directed by
Pankaj Batra starring
Gippy Grewal, Tania, and Raj Shokar,[76] [77] and a Marathi-language dark comedy thriller,
Vaalvi directed by
Paresh Mokashi, which won the Best Feature Film at the Chicago South Asian Film Festival. For 2023, Zee Studios plan to release a massive lineup of 28 titles across languages, featuring some of the best-known names in their respective industries. In 2023, Zee Studios also produced
Almost Pyaar with DJ Mohabbat, an Indian Hindi-language musical romantic drama film written and directed by
Anurag Kashyap, starring
Alaya F and newcomer Karan Mehta in the lead role. The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Marrakech Film Festival and its Asian premiere at the Hainan Island International Film Festival. Post-release, the film was praised by the audiences. Other Hindi-language highlights include
Devashish Makhija’s Joram starring
Manoj Bajpayee,
Abhinay Deo's steaming series Brown starring
Karishma Kapoor,
Nawazuddin Siddiqui starrer Haddi, and Vivek Chauhan's multi-starrer, action homage Baap, starring
Sunny Deol,
Sanjay Dutt,
Mithun Chakraborty and
Jackie Shroff in the leading roles. and another Manoj Bajpayee starrer drama Bandaa. Another 2023 hit, directed by Ashima Chibber, starring
Rani Mukerji was
Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway, which has surpassed
Shah Rukh Khan’s
Pathaan overseas. The film is growing to be an international hit, warming up the box office numbers and taking international audiences by storm. Surpassing Pathaan and
PS1, the movie is receiving unprecedented love and is recorded to be one of the highest collections for an Indian film in
Norway. It is also one of the biggest Indian releases in the Baltic regions of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The latest release by the studio was a Marathi-language film,
Ghar Banduk Biryani, directed by Hemant Awtade and starring
Nagraj Manjule in the lead role. Zee Studios' Tamil-language slate includes Muthaiya's Kather Basha Endra Muthuramalingam, starring
Arya; a landmark film and
Kishor Pandurang Belekar’s dialogue-free film Gandhi Talks, with music by
A. R. Rahman, with
Vijay Sethupathi,
Arvind Swamy and
Aditi Rao Hydari. Ashish Bende's
Aatmapamphlet marked the 1st historical association for a Marathi film that brought together 3 stalwarts-
Anand L Rai,
Bhushan Kumar and Zee Studios. The film was selected in the Generation 14 plus competition at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival. Zee Studios is also producing
Nayanthara's upcoming project, Nayanthara 75 (running title), with Nilesh Krishnan as the associate director and
Thaman S as the music director for the film.
Bro, starring
Pawan Kalyan and
Sai Dharam Tej, is under production is scheduled to release on July 28, 2023, and will mark the first collaboration of this director-actor duo. Along with these, Zee Studios has several more upcoming regional language titles include
Dulquer Salmaan's Malayalam language
King of Kotha, Vikram Patwardhan's Frame, and Kannada-language film Ranganayaka starring
Jaggesh, Telugu-language film Vimanam and Punjabi-language films like
Pankaj Batra’s Uchiyan Ne Gallan Tere Yaar Diyan and Godday Godday Chaa, starring
Gippy Grewal and
Sonam Bajwa, respectively. ==Domestic distribution==