EXCLUSIVE: Amit Dhanuka has joined forces with Indian filmmaker Shashank Khaitan at Mentor Disciple Entertainment as a partner.

Dhanuka and Khaitan will focus on creating both theatrical movies and web series under the Mentor Disciple Entertainment umbrella. Khaitan wrote and directed the Bollywood romcom Badrinath Ki Dulhania in 2017, which was attached to Fox International Productions and Fox Star.

Dhanuka was previously with Lionsgate Play India, supporting the establishment of Lionsgate Play in India as well as Southeast Asia. He was previously a Senior Vice President at Star TV, a Vice President at Zee, and also worked at Sony Pictures.

Mentor Disciple Entertainment recently partnered with Trigger Happy Studios and Hakuhodo for a multi-slate engagement.

“This partnership is personally and professionally special to me in equal measure. Our association dates back 16 years, as Amit is a friend of the family and one of the first people I interacted with in a professional capacity, fresh out of film school,” Khaitan said about the partnership.

“His experience of over 25 years in the film industry with Zee, Star, Sony and his last stint with Lionsgate adds a great dimension to Mentor Disciple Entertainment. Collectively our vision is to grow MDE into a company creating local and global content. We want to be the focal point, where established talent and new talent can find a home and express their voices.”

Amit Dhanuka added: “I am thrilled to be partnering with Shashank in the next phase of my career as we set up Mentor Disciple Entertainment to be the destination for content and talent. I have always admired Shashank’s work and creativity. We share common values which are reflected in the name of our company. Our shared vision for the company, grounded in integrity and creativity, fuels our ambition to cultivate a diverse ecosystem where talent flourishes and authentic narratives resonate with audiences worldwide.”