Film adaptation rights to hit Indian novelist Chetan Bhagat’s 2016 acclaimed book “One Indian Girl” have been acquired up by Sony Pictures International Productions. The studio plans a Hindi-language adaptation that will go into development later this year.
Bhagat’s book, which broke pre-sale records on Amazon India when it was launched, revolves around a high-flying woman financier who is intelligent and successful, but finds it difficult to find love.
The author of nine novels, Bhagat is known for lucid and fast-moving stories that translate well into film. Previous film adaptations of Bhagat’s books include “3 Idiots” (based on Bhagat’s first novel “Five Point Someone”) “2 States” and the award-winning hit “Kai Po Che” (based on “The Three Mistakes of My Life”). He was involved in the scriptwriting of “Kai Po Che” and “Half Girlfriend.” Writing, cast, crew and production details of “One Indian Girl” have yet to be finalized.
Sony Pictures International Productions, co-headed by Shebnem Askin and Michael Rifkin, is the local-language production arm of Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Motion Picture Group. It releases over 30 films annually across 12 territories around the world.
Lada Singh, director of creative affairs for the Indian arm of SPIP, was instrumental in landing the rights deal. In India, SPIP has been behind titles including “Pad Man” and “102 Not Out.”
“As the film market continues to boom in India, we’re continuously looking for exciting content that stands out from both a creative and cultural perspective, and we’re thrilled to adapt and produce Chetan Bhagat’s book for the big screen,” said Askin, co-head of SPIP.
“It is always exciting when a story you have written is interpreted cinematically. The fact that SPIP has acquired the film adaptation rights to ‘One Indian Girl’ is particularly promising because this is the studio behind some of the biggest films of our times. This story has both a national and international appeal and I cannot wait to see it on the big screen,” said Bhagat in a prepared statement.
From Variety US