After shooting across the UAE, Welcome to the Jungle has returned to India for its finishing touches — the final 20-day schedule of the ensemble comedy. In 2023, Akshay Kumar launched the franchise with a musical teaser before filming pivotal scenes in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Ras Al-Khaimah. Now, director Ahmed Khan’s venture is wrapping up its Mumbai schedule, which began on November 6.
“A few setbacks have happened, but the shooting has always been on track,” shares a source from the unit. “Ahmed shot two romantic songs in Dubai with Akshay and Disha [Patani] at the end of October. He returned on November 5 and resumed shooting the next day. Ahmed and producer Firoz A Nadiadwala are leaving no stone unturned to make the film look grand and larger-than-life with its 34-member star cast,” the source adds.
Akshay Kumar in ‘Welcome to the Jungle’
To shoot the scenes, Khan wanted specific plants and trees in the frame to enhance the film’s aesthetic. The source reveals that production designer Shailesh Mahadik created an expansive jungle in Film City, Goregaon, where “action and comic scenes are being shot. The area is so big that actors and units are using choppers to travel from one area to another.”
The director confirms, “Post [the shoot in Mumbai], we will head for a 20-day climax schedule featuring all the actors together followed by a song sequence.”
Khan is scouting for forest areas in North India for the last leg of the shoot, where action master Abbas Mogul will choreograph the sequences, including “chase sequences, gun fights, blasts, and a sequence with 300 horses in the climax.” Source adds, “The last schedule will begin from the first week of December, after which an introduction song with the entire cast will be shot in Dubai.”
Delays over time
Dec 2023 Filming began.
Early 2024 Delays due to scheduling conflicts.
August 2024 Set of a Kashmir town was destroyed due to heavy rains and had to be rebuilt.
Mid-June 2025 Kashmir schedule deferred due to unrest following the Pahalgam attack.
October 2025 Production activity resumed in phases.
