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Rohit Shetty is officially expanding his cop universe by introducing its first female-led film, starring Deepika Padukone as Lady Singham, aka Shakti Shetty. Known for his popular police action films, Shetty opened up about what inspired the creation of this character and how it will fit into his successful cop universe, which includes hits like Singham, Simmba and Sooryavanshi.

Singham, released in 2011 with Ajay Devgn, marked the beginning of this now-iconic franchise. At that time, neither the concept of a cinematic universe nor the idea of recurring characters across films was common in Bollywood. However, after the success of Singham, Shetty went on to make Singham Returns, Simmba and Sooryavanshi, each adding depth and new characters to the universe. This Diwali, Singham Again joined the franchise and has already crossed the Rs 200 crore mark. One standout addition is Deepika Padukone’s Shakti Shetty, a fearless female cop and the first woman in Shetty’s universe.

In an interview with News18, Shetty shared why it took time to bring in a female protagonist. He explained that he waited for the right story and the best possible way to introduce this character. “Until 2018, I didn’t even know if a cop universe was possible,” he admitted. The success of Simmba (2018) encouraged him to expand the universe with diverse characters, and during Sooryavanshi, the idea for a female-led film took shape. "We saw the acceptance of new characters and knew the audience was ready," he added.

Shetty mentioned that the COVID-19 pandemic delayed this idea. Sooryavanshi was initially set to release in 2019 but was delayed by two years. This disrupted the timeline for other projects, including Singham Again, which had been planned for a 2020 release. Reflecting on this, he said, “If not for COVID, we might have seen Shakti Shetty’s story much earlier.”

Earlier this year, Shetty cast Shilpa Shetty Kundra as a cop in Indian Police Force, a separate project on Amazon Prime Video. However, he clarified that Shilpa’s character belongs to a different narrative. “These two worlds are separate – Indian Police Force is its own IP on Amazon, while the cop universe with Singham and Simmba is ours,” he noted, ruling out a crossover between Shilpa’s and Deepika’s characters.

As for the standalone Shakti Shetty film, Shetty confirmed it’s in early development. “We have a concept, but the full script is still a work in progress,” he said. “I know what her journey will begin like, but we’re still shaping her story arc.” He’s confident, though, that Shakti Shetty’s journey as Lady Singham will continue, saying, “There’s a reason we emphasized her character and name in Singham Again.”

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