Excel Entertainment Turns 25, Launches 'Excel Origins' to Back Filmmakers Under 30

Excel Entertainment marked its 25th anniversary by launching "Excel Origins," an initiative from co-founders Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar to discover, develop and back Indian filmmakers under 30 (Variety).

The idea is rooted in the founders' own beginnings. Sidhwani and Akhtar were 26 when they started the company and began work on their first film, Dil Chahta Hai, which went on to become a defining title for its generation and set the template for everything Excel has done since: fresh voices, original ideas, creative risk-taking. In a joint statement, the pair said they started Excel 25 years ago believing that new voices and a different way of telling stories would find an audience.

The founders have framed Excel Origins as an extension of that founding philosophy, aimed at a new generation of talent. Under the banner, Excel plans to scout emerging directors and writers, offering them financial backing and creative latitude to pursue original material rather than proven, tested formats. The search will span multiple genres and storytelling forms, and it will extend to casting opportunities for actors and other talent early in their careers. The goal is an ongoing supply line of new directing, writing and acting talent, alongside original intellectual property, shaping the company's output for years to come.

Since Dil Chahta Hai, Excel's filmography has grown to include Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, the Don and Fukrey franchises, Raees, Dil Dhadakne Do and Gully Boy. On the streaming side, the company produced Inside Edge — India's first original series for Prime Video — and followed it with Mirzapur, Made in Heaven, Dahaad and Bambai Meri Jaan for the platform.

Excel has also been expanding its reach beyond Hindi-language production. The company boarded Half, a Malayalam-language vampire action thriller from Fragrant Nature Film Creations, ahead of its run at the Toronto International Film Festival (Variety).

Twenty-five years is a long arc in any film industry, and the throughline from two 26-year-olds making Dil Chahta Hai to a company backing under-30 talent across film and streaming is a tidy one. Whether the founders can find another Farhan Akhtar or Ritesh Sidhwani — or, more to the point, someone entirely unlike them — is the bet Excel Origins is now placing.