New Delhi, Jan 8 (PTI) Tell a story set in jail but make it more entertaining is how Vikramaditya Motwane approached the adaptation of "Black Warrant", his new series that sheds light on the world inside the high-profile prison complex of Tihar through the eyes of a rookie jailer.
A dramatised retelling of Sunil Gupta, the former superintendent of Tihar Jail, and journalist Sunetra Choudhury's book "Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer", the series is set to premiere on Netflix on December 10.
Motwane, who is returning to the streamer for a series after the much acclaimed "Sacred Games", said there was something inherently "masala" in the 1980s-set story.
"The overall approach, I think, was just the fact that there's something very masala about that. I wanted to deliberately take an entertaining approach to tell a jail story as opposed to taking a dark approach to telling a jail story. I was conscious of the fact that I wanted to make it masala, entertaining, and funny in places," Motwane told PTI in an interview.
"You are just following Gupta's life and you don't know whether he will survive in the job, go back the next day or just give up at some point in time. That keeps you really riveted for the show," he added.
A self-confessed history buff, the director, known for critically-acclaimed films such as "Udaan", "Lootera", "Trapped", "CTRL" and web series "Jubilee", said he was instantly hooked to the book when he read about Gupta's first interaction with notorious killer Charles Sobhraj.
"When the book came to me for the first time, I loved it. In the book, the first time when the real Sunil meets the real Charles Sobhraj, you're like, 'Wow, this is such a great scene, a great moment, and a great little bit of history that one never actually knew about.' And that hooked me.
"The more you read, the more you're like, 'Okay, I love where this is going.' The material is strong. Sunil Gupta's life, how he and Sunetra have put it together, was very strong. The challenge was to expand this book because it (spans) 35 years in 200 pages. So, how do you expand this into, hopefully, a proper drama series that you want to go on for a few years," he said.
Asked whether he hopes the series propels people to read further on what transpired during the era, Motwane said he would be happy if people dived deeper into the world.
"I'm a history buff and a student. I'm interested in anything. But modern Indian history is something that I think is very overlooked in general. We tend to kind of forget our recent history quite easily. It gives me a chance to also deep dive into into things because it explains a lot of things," Motwane added.
For the show, the filmmaker said he has mostly stayed in Tihar, but there are also events outside that influence what's happening within the high-profile prison complex, considered one of the largest in the country.
"You understand that, 'Okay, that's what the political, social or cultural situation is outside.' You're giving hints, which are interesting for anybody who's into history. You will understand where you are in the timeline of recent Indian history," he added.
Whether it is the popular cold drink Gold Spot of the era, the blue bottle of Camel glue, Bajaj scooter or Reynolds pens, the attraction for Motwane was in etching out the little period details.
"All those are landmarks of a very different childhood as opposed to childhood right now. You had one or two companies and they would be making those kinds of things and the consumerism was not that rampant. There is a lot of nostalgia for that."
Shashi Kapoor's grandson, Zahan Kapoor, who made his movie debut with Hansal Mehta's "Faraaz" in 2022, auditioned for "Black Warrant" and seemed perfect to play Gupta.
"I saw his audition and really liked it, then I met him. Zahaan has been literally brought up in Prithvi Theatre, which his father (Kunal Kapoor) runs. He's been a part of that world and part of that life for so many years. His insight into character, drama and stuff was quite phenomenal and amazing for someone his age," Motwane said about the 32-year-old actor.
Casting Siddhant Gupta, who broke out with his performance as the rising actor-filmmaker Jai Khanna in Motwane's "Jubilee", was an idea that came from casting director Mukesh Chhabra. The actor plays the role of suave serial killer Charles Sobhraj, who earned the moniker Serpent for his numerous jail breaks.
"He (Chhabra) asked, 'What if we cast your Jai Khanna as Charles Sobhraj?' So for a moment I was like, 'Huh?' And then I was like, 'Wow, that's a great idea!' I literally
went to Siddhant and said, 'Look brother, 'It's a small role but it's Charles Sobhraj.' And he came on board and did all the homework. And it was great.
"It was so lovely to just see him on set, just bring a character to life in this. And once he's in that get-up and everything else, you know, it's so great. I love it," he said, adding that he is happy that he also got to work with Paramveer Cheema, Anurag Thakur, Tota Roy Chowdhury and Rajshri Deshpande in episode two.
"I think they're all wonderful people," he said.
While adapting "Sacred Games", rich as it was in material, was an easier adaptation, "Black Warrant" had a different set of challenges for the filmmaker, who wanted to expand the story as much as possible.
"The challenge for us on 'Black Warrant' was more about creating that little bit of the flesh around the bones," he said.
Since most of the incidents in the series take place inside the Tihar jail, Motwane said he once visited the premises to get an idea.
"We made an actual replica of the Tihar gate outside and then we worked a lot to recreate the right vibe. We went to Bhopal and we shot at the jail over there, the actual old central jail that exists in Bhopal that's empty now. The porch area, where all the offices and waiting rooms are, they were made on a set," he said.