Kai Po Che! is just out and 2 States is coming up at the end of the year but Chetan Bhagat isn't the only novelist in demand! If there was one book you would want to adapt into a film, which one would it be? We threw the question open to the film frat and came up with some real page-turners. Read on...
by Jyothi Venkatesh and Sanyukta Iyer
ANUBHAV SINHA (Director)
'Priyanka would be the bold and beautiful Dominique'
Book: The Fountainhead (1943) by Ayn Rand
Published by: Bobbs- Merril Company
Price: Rs399
My take:"I'll make a better film than the one made on the book (The Fountainhead, 1949). I'd cast Amitabh Bachchan as the brooding and quiet Howard Roark and Priyanka Chopra as the bold and beautiful Dominique Francon. It would be difficult to say who'd play Peter Keating. I'll have to put together actors from different generations and different timelines. Wishful thinking!"
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AKBAR KHAN (Director)
'Ranbir would be my Archie
Book: Archies Comic Books by John L. Goldwater
Published by: Comic books, Village of Mamaroneck
Price: Rs 30 per comic book, My take:
Ranbir Kapoor
"I'd give the comic book a college-feel. Ranbir Kapoor would be my Archie, John Abraham would be the hunk Big Moose and Sharman Joshi Jughead! Veronica and Betty? May be Priyanka Chopra and Kareena Kapoor."
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BAPPI LAHIRI (Singer-composeractor-producer)
'Tagore with Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh and
Aamir Khan '
Books: Ghare Baire (The Home And The World) and Shesher Kobita (The Last Poem) by Rabindranath Tagore
Published by: Penguin Classics
Price: Rs199
My take: "I'd love to see filmmakers
adapt novels written by Rabindranath
Tagore and Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, whose Devdas has been adapted many times on screen. I would compose the music to suit Tagore's style of poetry, and every song will be filled with melody. The cast would comprise of older actors like Amitabh Bachchan, and if the script demands younger men, my choice would be Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan."
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TENA DESAE (Actress)
'I would love to play Teela opposite He-Man'
Book: He-Man and The Master Of The Universe
Published by: DC Comics
Price: Comic collection: Rs4500 My take: "I'd love if He-Man And The Master Of The Universe gets made into a film. The book has the potential to become a popular franchise! I would then love to play Teela, He-Man's partner-in-crime, as her character is intelligent, feisty and very hot! It would be fantastic to work in that story on the character! The costumes, fearsome Skeletor, He-Man, Battle-cat the tiger are great entertainers!"
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LALIT PANDIT (Composer) 'Rajkumar Santoshi should
direct The Mahabharata'
Published by: Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan
Price: Rs119
My take:"I would love to compose
the music for the film as I am a classical singer. I have also studied the story and could blend the music to perfection. It's the greatest screenplay ever written and I'd want the epic to be made into an elaborate film, telling the story of each character, and bringing them together in a brilliant climax. It would be the greatest film of all times with so many actors coming together! Aamir Khan should play Krishna and Salman Khan Arjun. Ranbir Kapoor would make a great Abhimanyu, Anil Kapoor is perfect for Yudhistir and Sonu Sood as Duryodhan. Shah Rukh Khan or Hirthik Roshan could be Karna. The film should be directed by Rajkumar Santoshi, who has been
researching the epic saga for a long time now.
RAJEEV KHANDELWAL (Actor)
'I've wanted to play the role of Howard Roark since childhood'
Book: The Fountainhead
My take: What's best about The Fountainhead is that it is very contemporary novel and I can relate to the multi-faceted character of Howard Roark who is the protagonist. Even though a rehash has already been made in Hollywood and many Bollywood producers have made shabby attempts at plagiarizing it, I'd still want to be a part of a screen adaptation. I've wanted to play the role of Howard Roark, since childhood. It's a dream and I'm waiting for an enterprising producer to take me on board.
NEERAJ PANDEY (Director)
'The Mahabharat is the mother of all stories'
Book: Jaya: An Illustrated Re-telling of
the Mahabharata by Devdutt Pattanaik
Published by: Penguin Books India
Price: Rs499
My take: "The only reason I'd want to adapt The Mahabharata is because it is the mother of all stories and it's the first book that comes to my mind. But it's very hard to say who would be my Arjun and Draupadi."
REMO D'SOUZA (Director choreographer)
'Hrithik is my Shiva'
Book: The Immortals of Meluha by Amish Tripathi
Published by: Westland Press
Price: Rs195
My take: "I want to make a film on the book, Shiva Trilogy based in Meluha. The film should be called Meluha. My definite choice to play the Neelkanth is Hrithik (Roshan)."
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DIA MIRZA (Actress)
'I'd love to play Noor Jehan'
Book: The Twelfth Wife by Indu Sundaresan
Published by: Pocket Books
Price: Rs350
My take: "The book is about how Noor Jehan falls in love with Salim, supports him through his struggles and finally marries him. She is a character I'd love to play. If some corporate is willing to plough in ' 500 crore, I would love to make this film. The film, like the book, would be a visual delight of dressing styles and eating habits of ancient India. I envisage myself playing Noor Jehan with shades of gray."
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SANJAY SHARMA (Director)
'I'll cast an Australian actor as Graham Staines'
Book: Who Killed Missionary Graham Staines? – A compilation of news reports
My take: "Graham Staines was an Australian missionary priest who was burnt alive in Orissa in 1999. I would love to narrate a fictional account of his horrific real-life story. I would shoot the film in the villages of Hyderabad and cast an Australian actor to give the book a realistic look on the big-screen."
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RAVEENA TANDON (Actress)
'Karan Johar should pick a new star to play Shiva'
Book: The Oath of Vayuputras by Amish Tripathi
Published by: Westland Press,
Price: Rs250
My take: "I have been an ardent Shiv
bhakt all my life. The book should be made in 3D, as a magnum opus, because we have never seen Lord Shiva's story unfold on the big screen. Karan Johar has bought the rights of the series from Amish, though I do not know which part he is going to make as a feature film. If you ask me, who I would recommend to play Lord Shiva, I would say that Karan should choose a new face, because superstars have their own image and it would be difficult for the audience to accept any reigning star as the God."
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"I don't read books, I only read scripts!"
– Jackky Bhagnani, Actor
"I don't think I'll ever adapt any book. In
fact, I want to put together a book on
my film Chaar Sahibzaade (2013). I'll do
the reverse!"
– Harry Baweja, Producer-director
"The last book I read was in school."
– Kumar Mangat Pathak, Producer
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