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EXCLUSIVE: Milind Soman’s Captain Vyom set for a modern-day avatar; Shaktimaan producers to develop franchise
India’s first space superhero, Captain Vyom starring Milind Soman is all set to return with a modern-day avatar.
The late 90s witnessed India having its maiden tryst with the space/sci-fi superhero, Captain Vyom – The Sky Warrior. Now, over twenty years later, India’s indigenous space superhero is set for a new, sleek and modern-day avatar. For the uninitiated, filmmaker Ketan Mehta’s popular creation – that had originally aired on Doordarshan – starred model-actor Milind Soman in the title role.
We have learnt that the newly-established production house, Brewing Thoughts Private Limited (BTPL), which is producing the Shaktimaan trilogy with Sony Pictures International Productions, has acquired the adaptation/remake rights from Cosmos Maya. BTPL’s licensed rights include a five-part feature film franchise, as well as an equal number of web series.
An elated Mehta confirms the news and says: “I am really excited. For me, Captain Vyom is an Indian-origin superhero for a global audience. And it’s time to reinvent when India is dreaming of its space in the new century. I am looking forward to our partnership with BTPL to take Vyom forward into the millennium. I hope and wish that this superhero flies to newer heights and distant lands. This franchise, with an intergalactic space adventure at its heart, can also be a perfect platform to showcase the best of VFX and CGI talent of our country.”
BTPL plans to develop Captain Vyom – a space / sci-fi superhero thriller – on the lines of Hollywood sci-fi space dramas such as Star Trek, Star Wars and Guardians Of The Galaxy series. Since the concept of space / sci-fi superhero has remained largely untouched as yet by Indian filmmakers, BTPL is gung-ho about the potential as well as the massive reach of the genre. In fact, the makers have already received three-four lucrative offers from top studios / OTT platforms for a co-production deal vis-à-vis the superhero franchise.
“Not just that, a couple of top, A-list young stars have also shown keen interest in playing the lead part. Besides, conversations are on with top-rated filmmakers, known for their big-budget films as well as sensitive storytelling. Makers, though, are still in a wait-and-watch mode, weighing all the offers and options. It’s a given that the planned franchise will show the never-seen-before world in the space / sci-fi space to Indian audiences but makers aren’t in a rush considering their vision is to put out the best-possible franchise in this particular space, from India,” says a source, close to BTPL.
“It’s a big challenge and a huge responsibility to attempt something like this, especially in India but we are keeping our fingers crossed. One thing is for sure, though. It’s possibly the best time to attempt a space / sci-fi superhero adventure in our country. Also, it feels great that we are reliving our childhood days – of the 90s – through our planned adaptations of hit Doordarshan shows such as Shaktimaan and Captain Vyom etc.,” says ex-film journalist-turned-producer, Prashant Singh, the director and co-founder of BTPL.
Initially, BTPL had planned to start work on the said franchise in 2020 itself but Covid-19 pandemic played spoilsport and delayed their plans. Now though, the company is set to start off with the first film, of the series, next year. “With the reloaded Captain Vyom, we intend to amp up an exciting space / sci-fi genre in India. Just the idea of having concepts like aliens, spaceships, time travel and space exploration merged with beautiful storytelling and backed by state-of-the-art VFX is very exciting,” says Madhurya Vinay, the co-founder of BTPL.
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