Ashutosh Rana and Renuka Shahane are adding a new chapter to their 25-year marriage, this time as actor and director. We caught up with Rana at an event in Delhi, where he shared an update on their first project together, the upcoming short film Tarpann, revealing that audiences can expect it this year.
“Koi timeline nahin hai (release ki). Is saal pehle festivals par jayegi. Jab baahar niklegi, hum aapko dikhayenge, batayenge,” Rana told us, indicating that the film will first take the festival route before being made available to a wider audience.
On working with wife Renuka
Asked whether their equation changed once Shahane called the shots on set, Rana was clear that the personal relationship remained outside the workspace.
“Woh nirdeshak hain, main actor hoon. Actor ko jitni suvidhayein deni chahiye, woh unhone ek producer-director ke taur par kiya. Aur ek director ko jo performance chahiye, woh maine diya,” he said.
He was equally effusive in his praise for Shahane’s creative abilities. “Jitni adbhut abhinetri hain, utni achhi lekhika hain, utni hi achhi woh nirdeshak hain,” he said.
Tarpann marks the first time Shahane has directed her husband, despite the two having spent decades in the same industry. Earlier this year, Shahane had revealed to HT City that Rana plays the lead role in the short film, calling their first actor-director collaboration a “big gamble” that ultimately worked better than she had imagined.
Shahane, too, has previously described Rana as a “dream actor” who trusts a director’s vision and does not arrive on set with preconceived notions about a performance.
All about Tarpann
The short film is titled Tarpann and features Rana in the central role. It is particularly significant for the couple as, despite wanting to work together for years, they had never previously collaborated as actor and director. Rana had told HT in 2025 that more than acting alongside his wife, he wanted to be directed by her.
Shahane later revealed that the project finally gave them that opportunity, admitting that she initially had jitters about whether their ease as life partners would translate into a professional collaboration. She eventually concluded that they “make a great team” as director and actor.
On the work front
Rana has had a busy 2026. His recent projects include the series Glory and films Ustaad Bhagat Singh and One Two Cha Cha Chaa. Among the projects currently listed in his pipeline are Dragon, Gangs of Ghaziabad, and Tiger vs Pathaan, in which he is expected to return as Colonel Sunil Luthra.
Shahane, meanwhile, was recently seen in the Marathi series Aga Aai Aaho Aai.
From partners to actor-director
Rana and Shahane’s story goes back nearly three decades. The two met in the late 1990s and dated for around three years before tying the knot on May 25, 2001. They have two sons, Shauryaman and Satyendra.
The couple completed 25 years of marriage in May this year, marking the milestone by renewing their vows and exchanging garlands in the presence of family.
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