Akshay Kumar to romance Sonakshi Sinha in 'Namastey England'?

Akshay Kumar has as many as eight releases lined up for the next two years, some confirmed and the rest aren't. "Namastey England", which has been on the anvil for quite some time now, is one such film that is finally ready to roll.

Director Vipul Shah said it's not until August that the star begins shoot, adding that Sonakshi Sinha may star in it. "We have locked the script for 'Namastey England' and we plan to go on floors in August 2016. Akshay Kumar will essay the character of a guy from Punjab. We plan to wrap up the shoot for the film by December 2016," he told Catch News.

The makers aren't calling it a sequel to the 2007 film "Namastey London" and are hoping to release the film in the first quarter of next year. "This is completely a fresh script and coincidentally, the names are similar. This is neither a franchise film nor a sequel to 'Namastey London,'" Vipul added.

"Namastey England" would have started earlier, but Akshay has to finish "Robot 2" after he's done with "Rustom," a thriller set in the 50s. The 48-year-old actor has a pretty packed calendar and some of the films he has been approached for are "Awara Paagal Deewana 2" and "Welcome 3." Since an official announcement is yet to be made, this can, at best, be considered a speculation.

Meanwhile, Sonakshi has promised an "action-packed year" ahead. She told The Press Trust of India that some exciting projects are coming up. "2016 will be an action-packed year. I am still in talks for some more projects, very soon there will be some announcements made," she added. Abhinav Deo's "Force 2" and AR Murugadoss' "Akira" are two of her upcoming films.