From Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas to Pradeep Sarkar’s Parineeta: 7 period dramas based on novels
From Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas to Pradeep Sarkar’s Parineeta: 7 period dramas based on novels
The Indian film industry has historically had a rich literary experience, relying upon popular novels, stories, and historical texts to create visually breathtaking and emotionally arresting films. The period drama is one genre of films that is particularly grand in their sheer scale and historical
Parineeta based on Parineeta by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay: Pradeep Sarkar’s first film is an exquisite adaptation of the popular novella into a melodic love story in the vibrant city of Kolkata in the 1960s. Called Paran Para in Bengali, apart from Vidya Balan’s dazzling performance, the presence of actor Saif Ali Khan and the beautiful visuals of the movie makes it one of the best adaptations in Hindi Cinema.
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Choker Bali based on Chokher Bali by Rabindranath Tagore: The film is director Rituparno Ghosh's adaptation of Rabindra Tagore's famous novel and deals with themes of love, jealousy, and desire in a performance by Aishwarya Rai as Binodini. The film is set in Bengal in the early 20th century.
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Bajirao Mastani based on Raau by Nagnath S Inamdar: A passionate story of forbidden love between Maratha warrior Peshwa Bajirao and his second wife Mastani, features Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra.
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Devdas based on Devdas by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay: Bhansali's Devdas is perhaps one of the most popular adaptations of Chattopadhyay's tragic love story. With its lavish settings, memorable music, and towering performances by Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Madhuri Dixit, this film escalated the 1917 novel to a marvelous opera.
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Padmaavat based on Malik Muhammad Jayasi’s Padmavat: Drawing its roots from the legendary epic written in the 16th century, Bhansali's Padmavat is an embodiment of the tale of Rani Padmavati, shown through grand visuals, exquisite designs, and extraordinary storytelling, with Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh performing well in the film.
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Pinjar based on Pinjar by Amrita Pritam: A very moving portrayal of the Partition aftermath, Pinjar translates Amrita Pritam's poignant novel truly well. Manoj Bajpayee and Urmila Matondkar are remarkably effective with their performance in this film that takes up the issues of identity, trauma, and the strength that lies in the human spirit.
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Gangubai Kathiawadi based on Mafia Queens of Mumbai by S Hussain Zaidi: Sanjay Leela Bhansali tries to recreate the life story of Gangubai, a brothel owner whose voice gained momentum as an advocate for women’s rights in Kamathipura. Although this movie is not categorised under the romance genre, the settings and the performances make this movie one among the classics since the 1960s with the outstanding performance by Alia Bhatt in the movie.
