MUMBAI: Going by the way Aamir Khan‘s latest film Delhi Belly got an all-round appreciation, UTV Motion Pictures has jumped into the ring to produce writer Akshat Verma’s first, yet untitled, directorial venture.

The film will be a comic thriller and is being scripted by Verma himself.

Speaking on UTV‘s associating with Akshat, UTV Motion Pictures CEO Siddharth Roy Kapur said, "As a studio, we have always believed in backing upcoming talent who have the potential to bring entertaining cinema to audiences. The fantastic script written by Akshat was undoubtedly one of the key reasons behind the success of Delhi Belly and judging by his concept and vision, we believe he‘ll write and direct a superb film".

"Working with UTV on Delhi Belly was a fantastic experience for me. To have a major studio get behind your film completely enables you to do your best work - I‘m inspired and excited to be working with UTV again on my next film,"observed Verma.

UTV has lined up a slate of films to be released in the rest of the year. These include films like My Friend Pinto, Barfii, Rowdy Rathore, Ghanchakkar, Joker and Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu.