Yami Gautam made her debut in the Bollywood industry along side Ayushmann Khuranna in Vicky Donor and since then the actress has done a few set of films. Now after gaining attention post her performances in  Uri: The Surgical Strikes and Bala, looks like Yami is all set to open 2021 with a bang!  After earning a place in Pavan Kripalani’s horror-comedy Bhoot Police, she is now set to headline Ronnie Screwvala’s next, A Thursday. The Behzad Khambata-directed film sees Gautam essay the role of playschool teacher Naina Jaiswal who, on a Thursday, takes 16 toddlers hostage.

Yami  is elated that the movie ticks two items off her wish list — being part of a psychological thriller and that of carrying a film on her shoulders. “A Thursday is one of those rare scripts that you just cannot put down. Behzad has written one of the strongest characters for a female protagonist; Naina is both, fierce and endearing,” says the actor, who can barely wait to breathe life into the complex character.

Khambata, who has doubled up as the writer, says he had written the role with Yami Gautam in mind. “I have never seen her portray an unhinged character. I was thrilled when she agreed to do this film,” he says. One to back high-concept ideas, Screwvala believes the movie — like his earlier production A Wednesday (2008) — will bring to light the failings of our society through the story of a middle-class teacher. He says, “This is one of those thrillers that not only has you on the edge of your seat, but also makes you question many aspects of society. Seeing Yami in a grey avatar will be interesting for the audience.” The film, co-produced by Premnath Rajagopalan of Blue Monkey Films, is lined up for a direct-to-web release.