Riddhi
Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj has partnered with Agatha Christie Limited to develop a film franchise for the Indian audience.
The name of her book that is being adapted is yet to be announced and the first film is scheduled to go on floors in 2021.
Iconic characters like Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, and Tommy & Tuppence are identified with Agatha’s creations, a press statement that Vishal is to create a new pair of leading investigators inspired from one of her famous stories. The first film will introduce a young heroine who is thrown into solving a murder, and teams up with an unlikely companion to unravel the case. The future films of the franchise will follow the duo as they unlock more mysteries.
While talking about this partnership, Vishal says “Agatha Christie had a tremendous skill of defining emotional chaos, dysfunctional relationships and the turmoil in her characters while engaging us in a riveting mystery. It is an honor to create an Indian franchise of a pair of young investigators looking to take over the world with their intelligence and charm. ACL has been such amazing partners and we are all excited to be on this journey.”
James Prichard, the great-grandson of the iconic writer and Chairman and CEO of Agatha Christie Limited, spoke about the first-ever collaboration in India and said “I’m truly excited at the prospect of developing a new Agatha Christie film franchise in India, and am delighted to be partnering with Vishal, who is a multitalented and visionary filmmaker with a terrific track record for adapting works to create memorable pieces of cinema.”
He also added, “He has also demonstrated a real passion and understanding of my great-grandmother’s characters and stories and I very much look forward to seeing where this project takes us.”
The script for the film is already under work and the cast is yet to be finalized. Basi Akpabio and Leo Dezoysa are the executive producers for Agatha Christie Limited on the new films.
