Shamshera teaser: Ranbir Kapoor battles with Sanjay Dutt, both looks strikingly lethal

The year of Ranbir Kapoor’s comeback is starting to take form. The long-awaited first trailer for the fantasy epic Brahmastra was recently released by Dharma Productions. On Wednesday, Yash Raj Films released the first teaser for the historical drama Shamshera, which will be Ranbir’s first movie since 2018’s Sanju.

The first shot of the minute-and-a-half-long trailer may serve as a reminder to viewers of Immortan Joe’s treatment of his subjects in Mad Max: Fury Road. Sanjay Dutt plays the adversary in the movie Shamshera, and his entrance is heralded by some manic laughter. In the recent smash film KGF: Chapter 2, Dutt starred as a villain; he was also a part of Samrat Prithviraj.

Although the teaser doesn’t give away much about the story, it does convey an idea of the main struggle. Dacoit Shamshera, played by Ranbir, leads his ‘tribe’ in an uprising against Dutt’s villain. The character is portrayed leading the charge across vast deserts while brandishing a pickaxe in opposition. He is projected as some sort of messiah-like figure.

The film’s breadth and the CGI landscapes that Malhotra and his team have created are also hinted at in the teaser. Shamshera’s tone seems to be a cross between an old-fashioned Western and an action epic from the 1970s.

The fact that YRF recently released the high-profile flop Samrat Prithviraj and the financially unsuccessful Jayeshbhai Jordaar, starring Ranveer Singh, suggests that tensions may already be high. Since 2015′ s lacklustre sports drama Brothers, director Karan Malhotra hasn’t produced a movie.

Shamshera reportedly cost Rs 150 crore to produce and also features Vaani Kapoor, Ashutosh Rana, and Saurabh Shukla. By subtitling the movie in Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada, YRF is attempting to position it as a pan-Indian experience. On July 22, the movie will also be released in IMAX.