EXCLUSIVE: Amey Wagh, Lalit Prabhakar and Vaidehi Parshurami to fight zombies in upcoming horror-comedy Zombivli

Ever wondered what would happen if Dombivali was taken over by zombies? Well, director Aditya Sarpotdar and his team did, and they are creating a full-length film around a zombie outbreak in Dombivali.
Titled Zombivli, the film is a horror-comedy that will mark the first-time union of three of the most promising youngsters from the Marathi industry- Amey Wagh, Lalit Prabhakar and Vaidehi Parshurami- on the big screen.
According to the makers, this is also the first feature film to start shooting afresh after the lockdown. Speaking about the same, Aditya shares, “There have been pending shoots that were completed, but our film has started from scratch after the lockdown. We began shooting July 27 in Mumbai, of course following all safety protocols.”

The film has a 38-day start-to-finish schedule, including a 14-day schedule in Latur when the Mumbai monsoon will be at its peak in August. Before starting the shoot, the entire cast and crew’s COVID-19 tests were done and they were told to home-quarantine for more than a week. Additionally, the team will be tested every 14 days till the schedule ends. “We have a team of around 80 people, but it is segregated in a way that only those who are absolutely needed on the sets at a given time are present there. In fact, we had to let go off some supporting actors who tested positive, but were asymptomatic,” shares Aditya.

Aditya also shares that the concept of the film is something rarely handled in Indian cinema and so, it needed a young star-cast that could identify with the genre and whom the audience would find convincing. “Barring Go Goa Gone, a zombie horror-comedy has never been attempted in India as far as I know. It’s a young genre and needs young actors. Amey, Lalit and Vaidehi fit the bill perfectly. We’ve got the best in the business on board for special effects, prosthetics, hair and makeup,” he says, adding that they will wait for a theatrical release and not go the OTT way, given the scale and USP of the Marathi film.
The actors too are excited to be back to work. Vaidehi was on board the moment she read the script. “It’s exciting to be a part of something like this. Yes, I was apprehensive of going to the sets given the current situation, but on the first day of the shoot, those fears vanished after seeing the arrangements. Plus, Amey, Lalit and I hit it off instantly,” she says. Amey and Lalit, interestingly, were working on developing a script that both of them could do together. “We wanted to work together and were in the process of developing a script on our own for that. Then, Zombivali happened and we were happy to be doing a film that both of us could identify with,” says Amey, who is collaborating with Aditya again after Faster Fene. Lalit, who had been doing WFH short horror films during the lockdown, laughs when asked if that was prep for this role. “Well, I can’t deny that it will come handy here,” he says, adding, “The concept and the team is amazing and I am just happy to return to work with a film like this.”