Team of Ayushmann Khurrana's Thama resume shoot as Rashmika Mandanna recovers from leg injury

Ayushmann Khurrana and Rashmika Mandanna

January dealt a blow to Rashmika Mandanna, who sustained a leg injury. Result? The Delhi shoot of Thama with Ayushmann Khurrana and Mandanna had to be called off midway. Last week, after a one-and-a-half-month break, director Aditya Sarpotdar resumed the vampire comedy's shoot in Mumbai.

Naturally, things have been sped up to make up for lost time. The original plan was to have a straight shoot from January. Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who plays the antagonist, was to join the unit in Ooty in February. Now, the plan has been reworked. A source reveals, "The lead actors, along with Paresh Rawal, are currently shooting at real locations in the city. On March 27, the cast and crew will move to Film City, where sets reflecting Delhi houses and streets have been built. The sequences that were earmarked for Delhi will be filmed here instead. Nawazuddin will join the proceedings then. The director is aiming for a Diwali release. After wrapping up the Mumbai leg by late April, the unit will be Ooty-bound by May. They will film the required portions in the Nilgiri forest and wrap up the project by May-end."

While it was known that Thama, the latest instalment in producer Dinesh Vijan's horror comedy universe, is set in two timelines, it has now come to light that the vampire comedy has a strong love story at its crux. "Through a central character, Thama explores unrequited love. Though set in present-day Delhi where Ayushmann is a historian, the narrative is laced with flashbacks that take viewers to the ancient city of Vijayanagar, where the love story begins," adds the source.