BOOK YOUR SHOW

Literary works are often turned into movies or series, some of which also do exceptionally well. We go behind the nuances of such adaptations to understand what works and what doesn't

- REYA MEHROTRA

 WHAT DOES GEORGE RR Martin and JRR Tolkien have in common? Well, they not only gave life to the greatest fantasy fictions of all times -Game of Thrones and The Lord of the Rings, respectively-but they also stood the test of time and kept growing in popularity as their literary masterpieces were adapted for the big and small screens. Both Game of Thrones and The Lord of the Rings saw their prequels (House of the Dragon and The Rings of Power) getting released recently and receiving positive responses.

Closer home, Ponniyin Selvan: 1,a Tamil epic drama by Mani Ratnam, became a pan-India hit this year as it brought the grandeur and the power struggles of the Chola empire to life onscreen. The film was based on the book, Ponniyin Selvan (1954) written by Kalki Krishnamurthy.

Often, critically-acclaimed and exciting cinema have emerged from great works of literature.Take for instance, the Harry Potter series, Gone Girl, The Day After Tomorrow, Parineeta, Devdas-the list is endless. In the recent post-pandemic years, filmmakers are increasingly flipping pages of novels to find interesting stories that could be translated into movies or series as the hunger for content grows with the presence of OTT platforms, among others.

In 2020, when Mira Nair's adaptation of Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy was released on Netflix as a series, it became a focal point of discussions on how suitably it had captured the essence of the book. The mixed reviews of the much anglicised series did nothing to stop the praises coming in for the flawless portrayal of characters by actors Tabu and Ishaan Khatter.