After winning accolades for adapting William Shakespeare’s tragedies on the Indian screen, the filmmaker is now going to make a trilogy inspired by the Bard’s comedies
Lasyapriya Sundaram (BOMBAY TIMES; April 5, 2018)

Vishal Bhardwaj’s trilogy of films based on William Shakespeare’s plays, Maqbool (Macbeth), Omkara (Othello) and Haider (Hamlet) have won plenty of critical acclaim. That’s not all; they have also earned him the tag of being one of the foremost creative minds, adept at making Shakespeare thrive with contemporary India as the backdrop.

Now, the filmmaker is all set to make the first film in his trilogy of comedies based on the Bard’s plays. In an exclusive conversation with BT, Vishal said, “For a long time now, I have been meaning to start my first film as part of a trilogy based on Shakespearean comedies. My films on his tragedies have received acclaim; they are part of the curriculum in many universities. Recently, a girl from Lucknow completed her doctorate with my trilogy of tragedies as the subject.”

Ask him which play he has zeroed in on and he reveals, “I have had a lot of people come up to me and ask me when am I going to adapt a Shakespearean comedy for the big screen. The first film in the trilogy will be based on Twelfth Night. The film will be called Chaudhvin Ki Raat. This particular play had two titles. One was Twelfth Night and the other was What You Will. The play was called Twelfth Night because it was first performed 12 days after Christmas. The title also refers to the night before Epiphany, the day when the wise men visited infant Jesus. When I wanted adapt it to a more contemporary and Indian setting, I decided to call it Chaudhvin Ki Raat because this night has a huge significance in the Indian context, as the moon is at its most beautiful. There is film an old song titled, ‘Chaudhvin Ka Chand Ho, Ya Aaftaab Ho’ and also a ghazal sung by Ghulam Ali called, ‘Kal Chaudhvin Ki Raat Thi’. The film will be set in contemporary India like all my other films, because I want to tell stories of my country. I want to throw light on the politics, culture and music of contemporary India.”

Who does he have in mind to play the roles of the twins, Viola and Sebastian? He replies, “it will be a big challenge to find an actress who can enact the roles of the twin brother and sister in the play. Cate Blanchett essayed the role of Bob Dylan in the film, I’m Not There. She was very convincing in her role and since then, I have wanted to find an Indian Cate Blanchett. Now, that’s going to be fun. I think that this will be a first in Indian cinema where a girl will play the role of twins, that of a boy and a girl.”

He adds, “Gulzar saab will be collaborating with me on the film. Except a couple of movies, I have done all my films with him. The film will have music as the backdrop. The play’s first line is, ‘If music be the food of love, play on.’ He always helps me bring out the musician in me.”