Trend of Movie adaptations from books

More filmmakers are opting for bestsellers rather than conventional movie scripts. Bollywood, over the years, has drawn heavily from literature. Filmmakers are looking at a slew of award winning books that not only have a huge fan base of their own, but also helps build the curiosity factor around a film.

The veteran filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj is particularly fond of adapting literary works into his movies. His Blue Umbrella was an adaptation of Ruskin Bond's novel by the same title. His movies, Maqbool and Omkara were adapted from Shakespeare's Macbeth and Othello. 

His last, Saat Khoon Maaf was based on Bond's short story, Susanna's Seven Husbands. Directors like Govind Nihlani, Shyam Benegal, Mira Nair, Deepa Mehta and Anurag Kashyap have quite often adapted novels.

Shakespeare has been the biggest muse to Bollywood filmmakers and among the Indian authors, Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay and Premchand have been the favorites.

More than 15 Chattopadhyay novels have been adapted into films, out of which Devdas and Pareenita remain popular. Bollywood filmmakers PC Barua, Bimal Roy, Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Anurag Kashyap have made film versions of the novella.

Chetan Bhagat seems to be the current favourite of Bollywood. With two of his books already made into films (including 3 Idiots), two more are on the anvil. 

Anurag Kashyap ambitious project Bombay Velvet that he was going to make with Danny Boyle has been in limbo for more than two years. The film is loosely based on Gyan Prakash's 'Mumbai Fables'. He was initially planning to make this with Shah Rukh and Aamir Khan but later the director denied the news.  Karan Johar has landed the movie rights of this debut book – Immortals of Meluha by the bestselling author Amish Tripathi. 

Vishal Bhardwaj is going to adapt a story from the Mumbai-based crime reporter S Hussain Zaidi's (of Black Friday fame) book, Mafia Queens of Mumbai. Mira Nair's next The Reluctant fundamentalist is based on Mohsin Hamid's international bestseller. The film will star Kate Hudson. Her last film Namesake was adapted from JhumpaLahiri's famous novel with the same title.

Movie Adaptations to watch out for in 2012

2012 will see these international films adapted from books: 

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by David Fincher stars Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara. It hinges on Stieg Larsson's crime novel and releases this week.

The much-anticipated "The Descendants" starring George Clooney is based on Kaui Hart Hemmings' work with the same title. Jonathan Safran Foer's 'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close with a 9/11 background has Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock in its big screen adaptation. 

Colin Farrell-Keira Knightley starrer film noir London Boulevard builds on Ken Bruen's gangster novel. Hugo marks Martin Scorsese's debut in 3D. Yann Martel's bestseller Life of Pi has been adapted into a movie by Ang Lee.

So, the trend of movies being made out of books shall continue. Breaking news also demands us to share that Ashwin Sanghi's 'Chanakya Chant' is also going to be made into a movie as rights of it have been bought today by a production house driven by Ashutosh Gowariker. 


But what is your take on this? Do you believe a movie lives upto people's expectations, once they have already read the book?

What are your favorite movie adaptations? Let's hear it from you!

Regards,

Team Librarywala

Karan Johar brings life to Immortals Of Meluha

We are sure many of you have read the book “Immortals of Meluha”. But soon you shall see Karan Johar bring LIFE to the book. 

Karan Johar's Dharma Productions has landed the film rights of Amish Tripathi's best-selling debut novel, The Immortals of Meluha. An insider says, "Karan credits the buying to the CEO of Dharma Productions, Apurva Mehta, who had been negotiating for the book rights for months."

Amish Tripathi was on the lookout for a producer to adapt his book.  There were herds of producers who spoke to Amish to attain the film rights. But finally Amish chose Karan.

That search has now ended. A happy Amish says, "I believe that my books are a result of Lord Shiva's blessings. He is a God who excites intense passions. If one wants to tell His story, it can only be done with intense passion and commitment. And that is what I saw in Dharma Productions towards The Immortals of Meluha. I believe that my book is in very safe hands with Karan and his team."

Karan Johar has been a happy soul since he got the rights. He says, "I was blown away with the world of Meluha and riveted by Amish's creation of it. I think the book lends itself beautifully for celluloid and we are very excited to promote Amish's labor of love effectively."

We all are waiting for this film to release. But who do you think will do justice to the roles of Lord Shiva and Parvati? Who would you like to see on the big screen? Share your views below J

For those who haven’t read the book, can rent ‘The Immortals Of Meluha’ at www.librarywala.com. Till then have a great week ahead J

Librarywala.com Reviews: The Immortals of Meluha by Amish Tripathi

Hello Librarywalas!
There are a few books that leave a lasting impact on the literary scene. The Immortals of Meluha burst in to the Indian books circuit, and took it by storm. This is our review of the national bestseller. Do give it a read.

Title : The Immortals of Meluha

Author : Amish Tripathi

Publisher :Westland

Mythology and faith have always been held on a giant pedestal in India, and millions are pious believers of myriad Gods. Against that background, Amish Tripathi’s debut novel is mythology on steroids! The book is the first installment of The Shiva Trilogy. Rooted in ancient scribes and corroborated in parts by history, The Immortals of Meluha is two parts action, one part drama and five parts speculative fast-paced fiction. How can it not enthrall readers, when its core premise is that Lord Shiva wasn't in fact a Lord, but a mere mortal that was immortalized by legend?

“Whether a man is a legend or not is decided by history, not fortune tellers.”

The story is set in 1900BC in Meluha (or the Indus Valley Civilization), an almost Utopian empire built centuries ago during Lord Ram’s brilliant reign. However the country is in a state of disarray as the Chandravanshis and evil Nagas align to terrorize the Meluhans, the sacred Saraswati river depicts signs of extinction and the magical ‘somras’ is depleting. The only spark of hope is ancient lore that states-when problems become insurmountable for ordinary men, the Neelkanth (savior) will appear. Chapter 1 ‘He Has Come!’ kicks off with a burly, battle-fatigued Shiva in a dilemma over an enticing offer from Nandi, inviting him and his tribe Gunas to inhabit Meluha.  Shiva finds himself responding to the call of destiny while finding love of his life, forming brotherly associations with some and leading a whole country against evil.  In the midst of awe-inspiring battle, Shiva rises to the occasion as the ultimate warrior, simultaneously coping with the trials and tribulations of ordinary mortals.

His tryst with inner demons, confusion, frustration and desperation to find the ultimate solution and the final realization will surely resonate with people of all age groups. The contemporary and conversational style of writing has clearly been used favoring the mass appeal, and has worked like a charm. The careful reader will find hidden nuances in Amish’s writing- the references to untouchability, terrorism and even immigration-which offer much fodder for thought.  The author creatively brings out every human’s stubborn resolve in prescribing to particular set of beliefs and believing that his way is the ‘right’ way.  One can draw many parallels with modern scenarios, especially with the Anna Hazare-lead anti-corruption movement gathering steam.

This concoction of angst, drama and romance makes for a heady read. Fusing fact, faith and fiction seamlessly, this is a book that deserves a marathon read, as it keeps you hooked from start to finish. The sequel to this book ‘The Secret of the Nagas’ is now out and promises to be an exciting read as well.

Librarywala.com gives the book 'The Immortals of Meluha' 4.5 on 5.

Feel free to issue the book online on the Librarywala website here: 

http://www.librarywala.com/WEB/BookDetail.aspx?BID=9562

Amish Tripathi is a marketing whiz and has generated a huge fan following due to his out-of-the-box techniques to reach out to readers. Do connect with the author here:

The Shiva Trilogy website-http://shivatrilogy.com/ 

Amish Tripathi on Facebook-http://www.facebook.com/amish.tripathi

Feel free to share your opinions on the book with us. 

Happy Reading!