Indian director-producer Anurag Kashyap has teamed up with three fellow filmmakers to launch a content-driven production outfit Phantom Films.

The three other partners in the venutre are director Vikramaditya Motwane (Udaan), producer Madhu Mantena (Ghajini) and the former head of UTV Spotboy Vikas Bahl.

The company’s first production is period romance Lootera, to be directed by Motwane and starring Ranvir Singh and Sonakshi Sinha. Set against the backdrop of 1950s Kolkata, the film will be financed by Mumbai-based Balaji Motion Pictures.

Kashyap says Phantom will develop projects around writers, directors and strong content, rather than stars. “The idea is to develop a creative studio put together by filmmakers,” he says. “We raised some seed money and will be working with various partners to finance the films.”

Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, which financed Kashyap’s Gangs Of Wasseypur, has joined Phantom as a private equity investor, although the partners will also seek additional partners to finance films on a project-by-project basis.

Kashyap’s existing production stable, Anurag Kashyap Films, is also producing love story Aiyaa, directed by Sachin Kundalkar and starring Rani Mukherjee and Prithviraj, for Viacom18, and comedy-drama Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana, directed by  Sameer Sharma and starring Kunal Kapoor and Huma Qureshi, for UTV Spotboy.

Topics