He may have had a laboured entry into showbiz, but Ali Fazal seems to have only gone from strength to strength in the last few years. While his act as the menacing gangster in Mirzapur has established him as a bankable actor among desi filmmakers, Fazal is rubbing shoulders with the finest in Hollywood too.

It doesn't matter that his upcoming film with Russell Brand and Gal Gadot has been delayed due to the lockdown. Fazal says while the movie was to release during Christmas, he now finds himself "among great company". "James Bond has been deferred, and so has Black Widow. We are now eyeing a September release, which is the hot season for big films," says Fazal of Death on the Nile, the mystery thriller helmed by Kenneth Branagh. "The team is confident of the movie. We have shot it on film. It is apt for the 70-mm experience."