MAHAYODDHA rocks!
UPDATE: 8 March 2008: The MYR trailer is currently showing exclusively in PVR Juhu and Malad in Mumbai before Jodha-Akbar and Black & White. I’m given to understand that this is an initial test screening. Nationwide exposure will happen later this month, with the release of the upcoming Hindi film Race. –AKB
Yesterday, I saw the opening sequence of Mahayoddha Rama, the final animation complete with background music and voice performances. I also heard two songs from the film.
I was blown away.
I’ve written a lot of scripts in my career. A lot. In my almost-decade in advertising, I saw almost a hundred commercials shot based on my scripts. In my freelance writing years, I wrote several dozen corporate films, public service films, and documentaries. I won a few awards. Later, I wrote over 400 television scripts–I’m talking about the ones that were produced and telecast, not the countless spec scripts and pilots that I wrote (a few of which I directed) that never saw the light of day. And even a few feature films, which I was careful enough not to lend my name to, thankfully. (Although some were for major names in the biz, I’d rather remain uncredited for mainstream commercial Bollwood movies.)
But I’d mostly been disgusted by the Bombay movie biz. The attitude. The mediocrity. the commercialism. The lack of any creative integrity. The lack of creativity, period.
So around this time last year, when I was approached by a debutante director named Rohit Vaid and a producer named Abhimanyu Singh, of Contiloe Pictures, I wasn’t very enthusiastic. Rohit was a fan of my Ramayana series, which helped a bit. :~) And Abhimanyu, ironically, turned out to be a neighbour–living just two floors below me! I met with them after taking pains to clarify that I didn’t take on commissioned scriptwriting assignments anymore. Whatever the project, price or prestige involved.
But their enthusiasm, love, and passion for the project hooked me. I signed on, despite myself. Surprising myself, my family, friends. And so Mahayoddha Rama was born, an animated film for viewers of all ages (it’s not just for kids, trust me) that aspired to match the quality of any international animated film, while aiming for a photo-realistic 3D animation style that hasn’t even been attempted yet here let alone achieved, and overall storytelling and production qualities that would make all of us proud–would make every Indian proud, in fact.
The script was gruelling. Yes, the film was based on the Ramayana of Valmiki. (Not on my Ramayana books–those are being adapted separately to live-action films by a Hollywood studio.) Yes, I knew the Ramayana fairly well, to put it euphemistically. Yes, the story was clear. But yet. But yet.
What we were trying was to reinvent the Ramayana for Indian filmgoing audiences, through the grammar of all-ages animation. Now that may seem simple at first, but it’s not. For one thing, there’s never been an Indian animation film that truly uses the grammar of animation. Sure, there have been the Hanumans and Bal Ganeshs, and the like, and they may even have done reasonably well, but they’ve essentially been compromises between low budgets and a dearth of creative courage.
Our attempt was much bolder: It was to create a film experience that wouldn’t simply retell Ramayana, but would reinvent it for a new generation. Similar to the way I had retold it in my books, but using a completely different approach, one suitable for the medium. The challenge for me personally was to write a screenplay in which not a single word, line, dialogue, scene, or new character, would be in any way similar to any part of my Ramayana books. Does that sound impossible? After all, we are still talking about the Ramayana. Well, it was hard as hell. But in the end, I did write the script, and, I’m proud to say, it retells Rama’s story (and Ravana’s story) in a way that even my books don’t. In a way that could only be done through the medium of theatrical animation.
Mahayoddha Rama is the Ramayana reinvented as an animation film for Indian viewers of all ages. After seeing the opening sequence, hearing the songs, bits and pieces of the production-in-progress, I can now honestly say that it’s the first Indian animation film that will match the international animation experience.
The animation, co-produced by Contiloe Pictures and Pixion is superb. It’s of a level you haven’t seen before on the Indian screen. It’s very different from even the typical American “Disney” style (or Pixar style) in that it aims for a more mature illustration style. More graphic novel than kiddie comic. More mature, while yet being fantastically entertaining. This is as much Ravana’s film as Rama’s–you have never seen Ravana brought to life this entertainingly and imaginatively before.
I could go on raving about it. But you’ll soon be able to see the first trailer promo for the film in theatres within a few weeks: It airs in March in all theatres and TV channels. It will be followed by a second trailer a month or two later. And then the music launch. And then the merchandizing–yes, there will be plush toys, and much more.
For the moment, I’m going to simply list some of the talent involved with the film. And end by saying that after thirty years of professional writing, several hundred produced scripts of all kinds, all genres, I’m finally proud to attach my name to a film that I think is really good. You’ll judge how good for yourself at the end of this year, when it’s released in theatres. But I’m already cheering and whooping about it here at my desk.
MAHAYODDHA RAMA: WARRIOR PRINCE
Producers: Contiloe Pictures/Abhimanyu Singh, Pixion Studios
Director: Rohit Raizada Jaising Vaid
Screenwriter: Ashok Banker
Music: Adesh Shrivastava
Lyrics: Javed Akhtar
VOICE CAST includes
Kunal Kapoor (Rama), Gulshan Grover and 9 others (Ravana), Jimmy Shergill (Lakshman), Sameera Reddy (Sita), Mukesh Rishi, Amin Sayani, Manini Dey, Lushin Dubey, Mukul Dev, Roshan Abbas…
“Best Fiction Series by Indian Author”
“Exciting, thrilling and very creative”
Posted by Maansi Sanghi on Mouthshut.com
I started reading this series out a curosity born out of the unusual concept of someone writing about Ramayana in neither
a religous perspective nor critical. I think this brings out the story of Rama in a much more realistic way that what has been presented so far. When I say realistic I do not mean to comment on the accurancy of the story. Each author till date has written Ramayana using his own perspective and every story was reflective of the age the author has written in.
I think Ashok Banker has done a tremendous job. I picked up this series after finishing reading the Shannara series and I can say with great pride for the Indian Author that this was a much more interesting read. I think this would be a good precident for auhtors to look up into the vase treasures of indian mythology and come up with many more such fantastic fictions and give us an interesting read.
Each character from Rama, to Jatayu has been creatively dealt with and the story sounds more interesting and intriguing than it ever did when I heard it from my grandparents!!!
Vertigo on Mouthshut.com
Reader Sumit pointed me to these reviews of my novel Vertigo on a site called Mouthshut.com. Some may be a bit old but they’re pretty cool, and clearly come from genuine readers who connect with what’s often considered to be my best book.–AKB
“Life, Love, Duties = Confusion??? Yes Indeed….”
Posted by Chintu25 on Mouthshut.com
Vertigo is the sensation of spinning or swaying while the body is stationary with respect to the earth or surroundings. (Source Wikipedia)
 Do we all suffer from Vertigo and we don’t know also.
Is it a side effect of life?
For Jay, our protagonist it is.
22 something, Jay Mehta lives in Bombay. Let’s talk about the main people in his life
Mom is an alcoholic. Christian married to a gujarati business man and later abandoned by him. Jay has never been able to understand the reason for their marriage & divorce.Â
I wouldn’t be wrong if I say that she is mentally retarded, forces milk on his son, beats him if he takes his own money from her cupboard and in better times cooks a meal for him which strewn with cockroaches (she doesn’t know that)……
Will Jay stay with her or move out for a better life? What is life at home for him?
She is just beginning to turn as he shuts the door, her hands limping sadly by her side, nightdress splattered with milk, surrounded by an explosion of glass and (oh God, she’s barefoot) white blood. Something has died here, it seems. Something dies here everyday, it seems. Perhaps someday, someone will die here too. He shuts the door on her and is gone….
Tuli, love of his life, is she? To say that she is very demanding would be an understatement. Sample the list…
-Â Â Marriage should wait
-  He should Talk to her parents but…
-Â Â Take a separate flat and live away from his mom
-  Don’t touch her
-Â Â Change the job for better salary
-Â Â & the list is endless
She scares our Jay by disappearing, appearing again, agreeing sometimes and then not talking to him….
Will Jay give in to her? Partially yes but then is this his life?
Â
Meera, a family friend, his boss for sometime (he was eying that promotion). A today’s woman, too fast for Jay but then she is the one who understands him. There is an undeniable attraction between the two but both are scared to explore it. Why?
Jay is in love with Tuli and believes that Meera can go to any extent for her ambition and that stops him….Meera on the other hand is busy running around fulfilling her ambitions and knows that Jay loves Tuli. Confusing? It is….
Will these two ever come together?
His Work, he is a client – servicing executive, dreams to be a copywriter….gets thrown out of this job because his mom chooses to visit his office (While Jay was with Meera) and ends up hitting his boss, urinates in his cabin and ends up in the cuffe parade poilce station.
But thanks to Meera he finds another better job, better earnings and has a better profile too. What will he do with the extra money?
Will he move out?
Â
Then there is his over ambitious father, he meets him on & off and talks about himself only and ignores any talk relating to his wife. This frustrates Jay but then he is of use to him, this is the side of his family which is presentable to Tuli’s highly affluent family.
Â
Link all the above characters and it become Jay’s life. A highly turbulent life thanks to his mom and Tuli. The young guy is forced to start working without actually getting a professional degree forced by the circumstance to support his ailing mother. What he lives, is a dual life & not normal by any extent. What will happen to him? Will he ever achieve anything substantial ever? Or will he always be overshadowed by circumstance & ladies in his life? To know more read the book…
Â
Why to read?
The book is set in the background of Bombay (yet again, looks like am getting addicted to the city) and depicts the turmoil’s of the young man very beautifully.
He is bound by duty, love & desire. To choose between a psycho mother (who even beats him) and the girl he thinks he loves. It is never easy to choose in life beacuse life never gives easy choices to us….
What I liked the most about this book is the racy narrative and real to life characters.
Each character is well defined and is grey to some extent, bound by their selfish interests, pulling each other to satisfy their desires.
Don’t we use emotional blackmailing in our lives? We do, sometimes seriously, sometimes jokingly. But in the process we forget what the other person might be feeling…. To choose between your mother & girlfriend…..so many people do that…winning here is an illusiion as at the end everyone is a loser…….Â
The book is all about reality, dark reality of life….a face of life which we haven’t seen as we have lived a protected life. But out there in this world there is a life where wives are abandoned, kids are tortured and so are adults. And sometimes there is simply no way out of the turmoils besides….death……
Read the book to know another face of life…may be we will learn something from it….in the current mushy mushy atmoshpere of Valentines day, this is another face of love which is ruled by circumstances, sympathy, duty, desire…anything but love….
We will learn to survive against all odds, because at the end of the day life deserves another chance, doesn’t it???
“Simple, Realist, Hits u in de solar plexus”
Posted by Manas Sengupta on Mouthshut.com
Simple, Realist, Hits u in de solar plexus
MUST READ!!!!
For anyone who has faced insecurity about work!
For anyone who has craved true love!
For anyone who has felt completely at sea about things around him (/her)!
For anyone who has ever been beyond the glory days of teen and tried to find his true self.
Jai, the protagonist, is you, is me, is all of us. His is a simple story told in simple words. Thats the best part about it. Unlike many Indian authors, A Banker, does not try and prove his worthiness as an Enlish writer by using heavy 10-letter laden words. He does so by writing a book he feels about, he surely has gone through and by keeping his foot rooted to terra firma.
For people in Mumbai, u will relate to him rite from the minute details, (viz. morning rush hour local to Churchgate) to the deep rooted concerns, rather insecurities, abt work, love, family, finance etc. For people outside of Mumbai, you will still relate to all thats happening in Jai’s life. Even if u dont know where and wat Gokul is. (THose who do, cheers, lived 2 years on those cramped tables!!)
Hats off to the author for writing a simple story which encompasses everything. Just one regret. How the hell did he not write a sequel to this book??
The various reviews of the book (not just on this site) called it an Indian epic. I was circumspect.. even cynical. But trust me, if you are a middle classed working Indian, you HAVE to read the book. And to think that this book was written in 1992, not much has changed!!
As for critiquing the book on specifics, here goes.
The charaters are simple, yet clearly and honestly defined. A spade is called a spade.
The plot line moves fast. Every chapter rushes you through a major event. Its so beautifully structred, you are finishing one episode and you are already thinking ’’What Next’’.
The pace is maintained through out, and that is the only let down. Cause, even the climax is the same. It doesnt reach a greater height. Unlike wat climaxes are meant to do. They end the story witha question mark.. thought provoking yes, but fulfillin no.
All in all, read the book, just get your hands on it. You will love it. I did. And it surely is the MOST simple yet enriching book i have ever read.
Read on..
“Indian Literature on new heights”
Posted by Daniel D’Silva on Mouthshut.com
Let me confess.
I always thought that Indian writers and Indian literature was a little above soft porn and a little below melodrama a la Ekta serials.
In fact, I wouldn’t be caught dead with a Indian writer’s novel on my person. Imagine my irritation when this book found itself in my house, and that too a second hand well worn version of the book.
It was a hot Monday morning when I started reading the book, what kept me into the book was the stark reality and the logic amongst the characters, be it Jay, the Marketing guy, his collegue and companion, or his girl friend, Tuli.
All these people are someone who can look around and find almost everywhere all around you. And this is where the author has won hands down.
The author hasnt prepared a dream for us to dream about, he has prepared a mirror to our society, and so beautiful is the mirror, that we are forced to see our reflections in it.
The novel basically is the life story of the main protagonist, and how he rises in his personal and professional life, with the help of many and almost all women he has ever met.
Once again, Ashok Banker has not created any miracles or any out of the way happenings for Ajay. He has shown the generation next and all the others coming after them that there is no comparison or alternative to those golden qualities of hardwork, talent and then lady luck.
But.. what actually made he remember this novel after almost a year of reading it, is this character which still makes me squirm in embarassment whenever I think about the novel and it’s characters.
The character of Jay’s mother, the doomed woman, who dies a silent and sad death, away from the only person she ever loved, her son, is someone which will wrench the hearts of all ’career oriented young people’ and show them the stark reality of where their preferences should lie.
Read it.
“The book moves on rapidly to a momentous climax.”
Reader Ritu writes on her Blog:
This is the second part of Ashok K Banker’s Ramayana series. It begins like the first one, eerily as Sita has a nightmare which is quite similar to Rama’s in the first part. The book deals with Ravana’s plan to invade and annihilate the Aryavarta.
Again lots of interesting characters. The guru-shishya relationship between Rishi Vishwamitra and Rama and Lakshman is well depicted. Lakshman’s character is fleshed out well in this book. He is the analytical one, as opposed to Rama who is the aggressive one. The chapter in which they discuss how Ravana could be vanquished is extremely enlightening. The ten headed Ravana’s character is enigmatic, and he promises to be one of the most interesting characters of the series. Meanwhile, the palace politics in Ayodhya are engrossing. The hunchbacked Manthara’s nefarious schemes to eliminate Rama are gripping. Banker depicts her as the worshipper of Ravana, the Dark Lord. I hope the other books make him complex and more interesting – he’s better than Voldermort or Darth Vader. Sumitra trying to unmask Manthara, and the relationship between Kaikeyi and Manthara – all lovely elements that add to the richness of the book.
Sita is refreshing. Not the long suffering Sati Savitri or a damsel in distress. Oh no, she is a warrior princess. Fiercely independent and courageous, she is probably the best thing in the book. Definitely someone Rama or any sensible intelligent man would fall for! She is convinced that the rakshasas are preparing for an invasion, and when her deeply religious and unworldly parent does not believe her, she sets forth incognito with her trusted bodyguard Nakhudi towards the dreaded Southwoods to search for evidence to convince her parent and the Arya world. Of course they meet Rama and Lakshmana. It gives the young couple time to get to know each other. Nice touch!
The two princes along with Rishi Vishwamitra are heading towards Mithila to attend Sita’s swayamvar. Since “Janaki Kumar” and “Nakhu Dev” are also traveling to the same destination, the sage who has seen through their disguise decides that they should travel together. On the way, Sita is unmasked and Rama rescues Ahalya from her condemned existence as a stone- lovely chapter with lots of fantasy elements in it. Vishwamitra reveals that Mithila will bear the brunt of Ravana’s onslaught, and the book moves on rapidly to a momentous climax.
Banker’s writing is compelling. It is one magical ride into the world of Ramayana where fantasy meets epic meets boy-meets girl tale. The book is a whirlwind that takes us from Ayodhya to Mithila with a side trip to Lanka and Rama weds Sita.
Great reading.
“I had heard good things about Ashok K. Banker’s six-book Ramayana series…”
Reader Ritu writes on her Blog:
I had heard good things about Ashok K. Banker’s six-book Ramayana series, and since I had to travel to Chandigarh and back one day, I bought the first two books of the series and settled down to read on the way. Let me tell you, its very rarely that a person like me who would even read labels and ingredients on bottles and the print on paper bags made out of newspapers gets easily impressed. But the talented writer has written a good tale – perhaps better than the blurbs. As Banker himself says in the introduction, this is not a translation of Ramayana. He is retelling the story in his own way or rather re-interpreting it.
Prince of Ayodhya, the first book in the series, deals with the ruling family and the court of Ayodhya. It is a coming of age kind of tale. The young prince Rama’s routine life is altered when the Brahmarishi Vishwamitra comes to Ayodhya to request Dasharath to send Rama with him to his ashram and destroy the rakshasas who hamper the daily activities of the sages and brahmins there. Lakshman insists that he will accompany Rama. Both the brothers are given incredible gift of brahman shakti, and taught how to use dev astras.
What I loved about Prince of Ayodhya is the characterization. Each character has been fleshed out and a lot of detail has been woven in. Banker really must have slept, lived eaten and dreamt Ramayana before starting to write. A lot of thought and effort has been invested in all the major characters, and many new ones have been have been added, enriching the story. Each individual is complex and multifaceted, having believable motives which at times clash. Rama is portrayed as a normal human, just like you and me, someone we can connect and empathise with unlike the the insipid Rama of the TV series, and the mythical Rama of the Valmiki or Kamba Ramayana. And Ravana and Srupnaka are present from the first chapter itself, which adds to the excitement.
Actually the relationships add to the convincing portrayal of the tale. Dasharath is convincing as the aging hedonist. His three wives, so different from each other, the elegant and graceful strength of Kausalaya, the greedy and grasping nature of the warrior queen Kaikeyi, the doe like beauty and purity of Sumitra and their relationships with each other. The love and camaraderie shared between the four princes, the special bond between Rama and Lakshmana and also between Bharat and Shatrughan are so believable.
Oh, how could I forget the description of the hybrids of Tataka and the battle which forms the climax of the book. Amazing!
The pace does not falter, and the book is engrossing. Every Indian is familiar with the tale but one never feels bored. The book is gripping. After a long time I have come across a book that justifies the clichéd term on the blurbs “SIMPLY UNPUTDOWNABLE�
My Mahabharata – the last mile
Last Updated: 2nd May 2008
Sometime on the evening of 18th of January 2008, my endless tinkering and revising and polishing of my seemingly endless Mba manuscript, now in its fifth year and growing as prodigiously as a North Mumbaikar on a McDonald’s diet (but with muscle, hopefully, and good fat!), finally turned into something else.
Because writing is not like constructing a building, there is no clear-cut line between writing and revising, tinkering and polishing, editing and rewriting. That’s why it took me several days to realize that what happened that day was in fact the start of the final draft of Book 1.
I finished reading over the first several chapters, slept on them (well, not literally, but you get my drift), and woke up secure in the knowledge that I was now on the final stretch, the last mile, whatchmacallit.
I was approaching the end of my Mahabharata retelling.
Now, in the case of any ordinary novel, that would mean I was only a few days away, perhaps weeks away, certainly no more than a few months away from writing ‘the end’.
In this case, it will still be years before I write ‘Ati-samaptam’. Because, unlike any ordinary novel, this story is several thousands of pages long–well over ten thousand pages long in manuscript, in fact.
So, it will still be anywhere from two to four years more before I finally sign off on the last page of the last volume of the last book of this massive undertaking. And, based on current publishing realities, it will take years for any publisher anywhere in the world to bring out the entire series.
That means it’s still going to be a while before you get to read ‘Ati-samaptam’ on the printed page of a bound book purchased from a bookstore–or even ‘Prarambha’ for that matter.
So I still can’t tell you precisely when, which month of which year the series will start being published, and what the schedule of publication will be thereafter. Those are decisions that will be taken by my publishers only after the first manuscript is delivered to them in a form suitable for publication.
And that won’t happen until I’m completely satisfied with the first manuscript.
This being a large work, and a long series, I’m not going to turn in that first manuscript a day sooner. As I’m sure you’ll agree, it deserves every hour, every day spent working on it, and even after I’m done with that first manuscript, I need to be sure that I can deliver the subsequent volumes in quick succession, without compromising on them either.
That means, I will still be waiting and continuing my revisions and rewriting, not only of Book 1, but the subsequent ones as well. As and when I’m finally sure I can start delivering volumes to a reasonable schedule–let’s say, one every six months, which is the gap between parts that my publishers in India prefer–I will start submitting them for publication.
So don’t look for a publication date on this page just yet!
But the good news is that I’m on the last mile. After close to five years of just writing and rewriting, revising and polishing, editing and re-editing, without having shown a word of a page to anybody–even my editors don’t get to see anything I write until I turn in the final manuscript, and the same goes for my family too–after all those tens of thousands of hours of work, I’m finally typing out the words as they will finally appear on those printed pages.
Some of you may have read an ‘excerpt’ I had posted from the first volume of my Mba some years ago–back in 2005, I think. It was titled “Bhishma on the bed of arrows”.
Some of you may have read me commenting on various beginnings I was toying around with, several approaches.
This is nothing like those.
It’s a fresh approach, a consolidation of many I’ve considered before, but in itself a wholly new line of thought.
It’s a true beginning.
It’s true to the original Vyasa Sanskrit poem. And, as I’ve always promised, it will contain every single story contained in the original Mahabharata.
By which I refer not to the original ‘Jaya’ composed by Krishna-Dweipayana Vyasa (whom we know today as ‘Ved’ Vyasa) of 8,800 shlokas. Nor even the expanded ‘Bharata’ revised and expanded by Vyasa himself alongwith his son and disciple Vaisampayana, of 24,000 shlokas. I mean the full unabridged ‘Mahabharata’ of 100,000 shlokas, which I have used as my source, then expanded and dramatized throughout in my own way.
This shall indeed be the first complete Mahabharata retold for modern readers. That is partly why it’s going to be so huge.
The Mahabharata portions run into 9 volumes of over 1,000 pages each. Plus there’s the Harivamsha sections which I am collecting in my ‘Krishna’ series in 8 volumes of over 800 pages each.
(Earlier I had mentioned there would be 18 books. That hasn’t changed–there will still be 18 parvas, exactly as per the original Vyasa Mahabarata. But now, when I say nine books, I mean nine double-sized volumes. To give you an example, each of these nine Mba volumes will be thrice as large as a single Ramayana paperback book–and even larger than a Ramayana hardcover omnibus! The only difference is that I’m now submitting the Mba to my publishers in nine bigger volumes rather than 18 relatively ’smaller’ volumes, in order to see the full series published faster. Since publishers insist on a certain minimum gap between books, I felt that it would be best to have nine big books, instead of 18. But by ‘normal’ standards, these nine volumes are each the size of several ‘normal’ novels. Had I split the Mba into the same sized books as my Ramayana, it would fill 27 paperbacks of around 600 pages each!)
The style is very different from my Ramayana, less wordy, more compressed, more powerful, more appropriate to an epic so massive, packed so full of action, deed, drama, character, and story.
I do take off on my own fanciful imaginative flights, swooping in and out of the story in my own idiosyncratic way. I take my own left turns and U-turns when I please, in flagrant violation of all traffic rules. I ride my chariot of imagination as I wish, where I please, when I desire.
But, as with my Ramayana–in fact, much more so this time–I stick closely to the basic structure of the epic. So much so that I have worked with one eye on the original Sanskrit and the other eye on several excellent translations, every step of the way. That was in a way the hardest part for me, not to just go riding wildly off in all directions at once as I like to do, but to follow the broad path that Vyasa gave us. The great Indian trunk road.
Oh, I meander. I admit it freely. I meander, I wander, I browse, I graze, I follow side-paths and foolish fancies. I wander lonely as a cloud and bustle like bristling crowds.
But I’m always following the path of the river, from the glacial Himalayas down to the sea.
The great river of story…down to the ocean of story.
Kathasaritsagara.
And now, I can say with full confidence, that I am on the right course. And I will stay this course until it is done.
You probably have many questions now:
When will it be published? When will the first book be out? Will it be published in the UK, USA, Germany, Japan, etc, etc, etc.?
I can’t answer any or all of those questions now.
Keep checking back from time to time. I will try to update this Mba page as often as possible in the months and years to come.
And the minute I submit this final, complete manuscript of the first book to a publisher, I will share the news with you.
This also means I won’t blog as often as I might want to, or update this website as often either. I’m sure you’d rather have me finishing the Mba than posting my thoughts about books, movies, current events, or links to other websites!
One thing that’s already been taking up a bit of my time, unexpectedly is the sudden surge in interest in the film rights to the series. Perhaps following the purchase of film rights to my Ramayana, or because of the success of the Ramayana series books, I’ve been approached by several producers enquiring if film rights are available for my Mba.
I’ve told all three producers who have approached me so far–all major international names, two based in the UK and one a major American studio–that I will not even consider offers until the first book is published, or at the very least in the publication pipeline at least.
After that, it will be out of my hands, and in…their hands.
And from their hands…to your’s.
And there’s not long to wait.
Only a matter of time now.
Counting down…
Sold out on pre-order! 
Available only from me directly. 
Available only from me directly. 
Available only from me directly. 