Sahir Ludhianvi biopic will now be made as a series

Akshay Manwani and Sanjay Leela Bhansali

For almost five years, Sanjay Leela Bhansali has been toying with the idea of making lyricist-poet Sahir Ludhianvi's biopic. Despite being unable to zero in on the leads for his film, the filmmaker has not lost hope yet, as the film continues to be among his passion projects. Rainbox Studios has acquired the book adaptation rights for Sahir Ludhianvi: The People's Poet and they will make a series in an audiovisual format to celebrate the centenary of Sahir's birth which is in 2021.

The biopic trails his life since his dysfunctional childhood to becoming one of India's most celebrated songwriters with hit numbers from classic films like Pyaasa (1957), Naya Daur (1957) and Phir Subah Hogi (1958) under his belt.

Sahir Ludhianvi

Produced by Rainbox Studios, the script for the series will also be penned by Manwani. He says, "The People's Poet is the most intimate and thorough real-life story of Sahir Ludhianvi. It explores the various facets of a remarkable personality, who continues to enthral his fans, film enthusiasts, and poetry lovers to this day."

Manwani adds that the decision to develop the script stemmed from the idea of introducing Ludhianvi's work to the world. "The decision came from the shared vision of how the story of this genius should play out for audiences the world over."

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