Second time around

Rahul Bose buys film rights of Mohsin Hamid’s debut novel for his second film as
director

If all goes well, Rahul Bose will be directing his second feature film after Everybody Says I’m Fine, which he made seven years ago. It will be a screen adaptation of Mohsin Hamid’s 2000 debut novel Moth Smoke.

“Right now it’s too early to talk about this. I’m  co-writing the screenplay with a writer in Los  Angeles, a very close friend of mine, Satish Menon, and Nishar Modi. The final draft would be ready by May 15,” said Rahul. So who’s producing the film that Rahul will be making? Apparently there are many takers.

“One international and two Indian producers have shown interest in the project. But it’s much too early to name them. There can be many slips between the cup and the lip. And I don’t want to be just one of those people who discuss projects and move on,” he added. Rahul has paid for the filming rights of Moth Smoke from his own pocket.

“My three producers were willing to pool in the money to buy the rights. But I wasn’t comfortable with that deal. I’d like to have full creative control over the project,” he said.

What Rahul liked about the book is that it’s about both love and hatred. “It’s a love and hate triangle, incredibly plausible on both levels. The challenge is to take the micro aspect of the novel on screen to the macro level. The exuberance of Everybody Says I’m Fine will be curbed,” he said.

About his long absence from filmmaking, Rahul said: “Ideally, I’d have loved to direct another film much earlier. Perversely, I’ve taken that time to do the maximum number of films, including Kaalpurush, Anuranan, The Whisperers, Before The Rains and now Aparna Sen’s The Japanese Wife. I’ve never done so many films before.”