MUMBAI: Besides marking the centenary of Indian cinema, the year 2012 will also see the revival of Bombay Talkies.

The iconic studio, which was established in 1934, was closed down in 1954. Owned by Dube Industries, the studio will start with the launch of two films in June.

As the first public limited film company, Bombay Talkies was registered under the Indian Companies Act and soon emerged as an organised company with well-managed financials, acquiring a reputation for public issues, dividends and bonuses.

Studio manager Satish Mahajan revealed that the studio had to close down because of financial mismanagement by Sashadhar Mukherjee after the release of the Ashok Kumar-starrer Mahal in 1949. “Last year, we took a conscious decision to restart the company on the occasion of the centenary celebration of Indian cinema,” he added.

The first film to be launched by the re-emerging studio has been titled Zakhmi that will feature Abhay Kumar, grandson of one of the studio’s original owners Rajnarayan Dube. It will also star Sayali Bhagat along with Mithun Chakraborty.

Though the second film is yet untitled, those being considered for it are Mallika Sherawat, Tusshar Kapoor and Vinay Pathak.

Incidentally, the studio had launched some of the biggest stars of Hindi cinema like Devika Rani, Ashok Kumar, Leela Chitnis, Raj Kapoor, Mehmood, Madhubala and Dilip Kumar.

The newly-opened studio operates from Lokhandwala.