MUMBAI, June 11 -- For two years, Aanand L. Rai has assured interviewers that a third "Tanu Weds Manu" was coming, the script nearly locked, the stars willing. On Tuesday night the franchise's rights holder announced the next chapter, and his name was not in it.

"Tanu Weds Manu - The Next Chapter" will be directed by Mitakshara Kumar, the filmmaker behind "The Empire" who co-directed "Heeramandi," and goes on floors in 2026 as a co-production with Rudrak Soma Jyoti, Eros Innovation said in a slate announcement carried by news agency ANI. No cast was announced, and the statement made no mention of Rai, of Kangana Ranaut or of R. Madhavan, the trio who made the 2011 original and its 2015 sequel two of Hindi comedy's most loved films.

The ...