After making colossal spectacles for the silver screen, director Sanjay Leela Bhansali is set to take OTT a notch higher with his upcoming epic series Heeramandi. No points for guessing, the series will bring back the signature SLB aesthetics.
The filmmaker unveiled the teaser of the highly anticipated streaming series on Saturday in Mumbai. The teaser introduces the viewers to the world of `Heeramandi` and the central characters of courtesans played by actresses Aditi Rao Hydari, Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Richa Chadha, Sharmin Segal, and Sanjeeda Sheikh with an Indian classical score playing in the background.
The series explores the cultural reality of Heeramandi, a dazzling district, through the stories of courtesans and their patrons set against the tumultuous backdrop of the Indian freedom struggle of the 1940s. Netflix's Co-CEO Ted Sarandos, and Bhansali came together in Mumbai to exchange insights on the expanding world of Indian and global storytelling on Saturday.
Praising Bhansali's vision, Sarandos said, "At Netflix, we take pride in partnering with the best creators from around the world. Sanjay Leela Bhansali is a true visionary, and we are thrilled to collaborate with him."
Meanwhile, last year, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film Gangubai Kathiawadi. which starred Alia Bhatt as a sex worker turned mafia queen, released. In the film, Alia Bhatt later takes on the role of a social warrior fighting for the legalisation of prostitution and the basic legal rights of sex workers. The film opened to a tremendous response and managed to bring the audience back to the theatres when other Bollywood films were suffering after a Covid-19-induced lull.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali took a risk and released his film on February 25, a time when people were hesitant in going to theatres due to the pandemic. Surprisingly, Gangubai Kathiawadi earned Rs 10.50 on its first day, a healthy number given the circumstances. Despite the fact that theatres in Mumbai and Delhi were limited to only 50% occupancy and there were no night shows in the Delhi circuit, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film managed to perform very well. Good word of mouth also played a big role in drawing the audience to the theatres. Eventually, Gangubai earned over Rs 200 crore at the box office but its impact goes beyond the numbers. (With inputs from IANS)
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