What is common between The Good Earth, The Godfather, Schindler’s List and Slumdog Millionaire? Well, they all have won the Best Film Oscars, to begin with and they are based on novels. In a recent interview, John Abraham suggested Bollywood filmmakers look for stories in books. The actor feels that instead of getting inspired by Hollywood films, filmmakers should start adapting stories from books. While many filmmakers second John’s statement, few feel it’s best to stick to original scripts.
After adapting a film Aisha from Jane Austen’s classic Emma, filmmaker Rajshri Ojha is geared up to release her English film Chaurahen based on contemporary author Nirmal Verma’s short stories in March. She says, “In India, literature offers some of the richest stories that can be converted into films. But with it, comes the responsibility of doing justice to both the film and the script. The movie The Namesake based on Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel and The Shining, based on the book by American author Stephen King, are mind-blowing works till date. On the other hand, movies like Da Vinci Code and Memoir of a Geisha could have been made better. A novel is something that is popular and people have read it. Readers have already imagined their hero and the heroine. It’s the director’s job to understand the characters in the book and take it to another level. While a writer just has words to express, filmmakers have the power of technology, images and actors to push the boundaries and build it better. Today, more than conventional pieces, there are many contemporary books that can be converted into film. As per original ideas, in the current scenario, I don’t think any fabulous script is coming up.”
Several filmmakers are now looking at a slew of award-winning books that not only have a huge fan base of their own, but also help build the curiosity factor around a film. Dibaker Bannerjee’s upcoming political thriller Shanghai is based on the Greek author Vassilis Vassilikos book Z. Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet is based on the popular comic character of North India — Doga. While Sajid Nadiadwala has bought the rights of the novel Two States: The Story Of My Marriage, Karan Johar is all set to direct Immortals Of Meluha by the bestselling author Amish.
After Maqbool and Omkara were adapted from Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Othello, Vishal Bhardwaj is set to adapt a story from Mumbai-based crime reporter S. Hussain Zaidi’s book, Mafia Queens of Mumbai.
Filmmaker Anusha Rizvi of Peepli Live fame, who is making Amitav Ghosh’s Sea of Poppies into a film, says, “Literature has been providing a great deal to cinema from years. There is no dearth of ideas in literature, but it’s our filmmakers who don’t read enough novels. From Bengal to South India, there are an amazing number of young authors whose works can be made into film. Literature introduces you to different worlds, cultures, cross-section of people, emotions, which provide a better edge to the film, which otherwise is not possible in original scripts.”
Giving a different point of view, National Award-winning director Rahul Dholakia, of Parzania fame, says that though there is a lot of scope for films to be made from novels, original scripts or real stories remain his first priority while directing a film. “Adapting an acclaimed book into a film is always a good option, but it’s a third priority for me after original script or film based on real-life stories. To make a novel into a film, it’s very important for directors to remain focused on the intent and content of the book. I would personally love to direct one of the short stories of Pakistan writer Saadat Hasan Manto.”
Producer Arindam Chaudhuri, who has won National Awards for films The Last Lear, Do Dooni Chaar, is planning a film based on bestselling novel Lashkar by Mukul Deva for which they have acquired the rights and will be adopting it into the big screen.