Rajniesh Duggal is going to play a chemistry teacher. Not a movie chemistry teacher, an actual one. The actor confirmed during an Instagram Live with Pankaj Sijairya, the Physics Wallah organic chemistry teacher known for mixing shayari into his lessons, that a biopic on Sijairya is in the works and that he'll play the man himself.

The reveal came as something of a surprise, sprung on Sijairya live on camera. "I have a very interesting surprise for you, Pankaj sir," Duggal told him. "One of your students has actually written the film and asked me if I would like to play your role in it. So I said 100% that if there is something like this, I would absolutely want to be a part of it. In fact, I finished the script today, and it is written in a very interesting way."

That detail about the writer is the real hook here. The film has been written and will be directed by James A., who studied under Sijairya. So this isn't a studio picking up rights to a viral teacher's story from the outside. It's coming from inside the classroom, told by someone who sat through the lessons that made Sijairya a name among Physics Wallah students in the first place — the humour, the relatable examples, the shayari dropped mid-explanation of an organic reaction.

Esha Talwar has been cast as the female lead, according to both Bollywood Hungama and Koimoi, though neither outlet has said whether her character is based on a real person or how she fits into Sijairya's story.

What we don't know yet outnumbers what we do. There's no title. No production timeline. No release window. Bollywood Hungama and Koimoi both report the film is "currently in development," which is trade-speak for exactly what it sounds like, a script that exists, a cast that's partly locked, and not much else confirmed on paper.

For Duggal, this is a step sideways from the kind of horror and thriller work he's built a career on. He's got The Wardrobe, co-starring Divya Agarwal, lined up for an April 24, 2026 release, so this Sijairya project slots in as a second, very different bet for the actor next year, or possibly later depending on when shooting actually starts.

The pitch itself is unusual enough to carry attention regardless of budget or marquee names. A teacher who built a following by making organic chemistry bearable through jokes and couplets, played on screen in a script written by his own former student turned director. Whether that translates into a compelling two hours is the next question, and one that won't get answered until Physics Wallah's production team, or whoever's backing this, puts out a title and a date.