Shekhar Kapur is scouting for an actress to play Cleopatra in his TV series; also working on a series on William Shakespeare
Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 17, 2015)

Shekhar Kapur is all set for a royal reign on television. The writer-director recently announced a "huge" TV series on Cleopatra and is currently scouting for an actress to play her. "I'm travelling all over the world. I may have to change my email id soon with all the pictures flooding in," he laughs. "It took me eight months to find Cate Blanchett to play Elizabeth. I hope I find my Cleopatra sooner."

The role has become synonymous with Elizabeth Taylor after she starred in the 1963 historical. Shekhar is looking for a younger actress to play her from the age of 18 to 39. "She was not Egyptian but of Greek descent. From her statues, Cleopatra looked a little like Jennifer Lawrence which is not to say that we'll be going to her, she would be too busy," he says. Shekhar points out that everything we know about the Queen was from the Romans who saw women as subordinate to men and hated her. They believed she was an evil seductress who made Julius Caesar and Marc Antony fall in love with her. The series will re-image her history and show her as a brighter, richer and better administrator-ruler than the men of her time. "I see her as a powerful woman, a conqueror, like my Elizabeth and Bandit Queen. The series will retell her story," he asserts.

Does he view her death as murder or suicide? "It was suicide. Octavian Augustus, the Caeser then, defeated her in battle and wanted to take her to Rome in chains to destroy her myth. But before he could do so, she died with a snake—the symbol of spirituality, infinity and motherhood— at her breast. Even in death she stole the show from Augustus. He was a great ruler but no one remembers him. They remember Cleopatra and the myth she created," he reasons, adding that he is in talks with four channels and hopes to start filming soon.

But before Cleopatra he will film another TV series on William Shakespeare. "It's the Bard's life story. I have Baz Luhrmann's screenplay writer, Craig Pearce, who worked with him on The Great Gatsby, Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge!, collaborating with me," exults Shekhar, pointing out that today's feature films are all about franchises. "They are entertaining but not the best stories. The best dramas, like Breaking Bad and Orange Is The New Black are playing on TV. Even in India, people are hooked on western TV series which are drawing the best directors."

With his futuristic fantasy drama, Paani, expected to set a shooting date by October, how will he juggle three projects? "Only two episodes of the TV series, House Of Cards, playing on Netflix was directed by executive producer David Fincher. After that, it's a new director every week. I will direct the first two episodes, then, since I have conceived and worked with the writer, I will oversee the two series and focus on Paani," he says.