With Arya’s spy thriller Mr X gearing up for a theatrical release on April 17 after a long delay, director Manu Anand has shared insights into the film’s plot.

In a recent interview, the FIR filmmaker revealed that Mr X follows an episodic narrative inspired by real-life incidents, drawing parallels to Dhurandhar: The Revenge. “In Ranveer Singh’s film, there are different episodes based on real events like demonetisation. They are all pieced together into a screenplay. More or less, this is what we have also done,” he said, adding that the script was locked during 2022–23.

He further explained that the film’s idea originated from an incident dating back to the 1960s, which he felt had a James Bond-like appeal. “I developed it during the pandemic. A collection of espionage-related incidents forms Mr X,” he added.

The film stars Arya alongside Manju Warrier, Sarath Kumar, and Gautham Karthik, with music by Dhibu Ninan Thomas, cinematography by Arul Vincent, and editing by Prasanna GK. Backed by Vineet Jain and S Lakshman Kumar, Mr X is co-produced by A Venkatesh.