BBC’s ‘A Suitable Boy’ stars Ishaan Khatter and Tabu

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Ishaan
Literary Hub

As far as period dramas go, nobody does them quite like the British Broadcasting Corporation. A period drama is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Such historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films and swashbucklers. After the success of iconic movies like “Pride and Prejudice”, “War and Peace” and “Sanditon”, the man behind all these stunning book-adaptations, Andrew Davies, has taken it upon himself to create a TV miniseries based on Vikram Seth’s magnum opus “A Suitable Boy”. The miniseries stars Ishaan Khatter and Tabu.

The Setting

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It is a novel by Vikram Seth, published in 1993. This one finds setting in a new post-independence, post-partition India. The novel follows the story of four families over a period of 18 months. And centres on Mrs Rupa Mehra’s efforts to arrange the marriage of her younger daughter, Lata, to a suitable boy. It begins in the fictional town of Brahmpur, located on the Ganges between Banaras and Patna. Brahmpur, along with Calcutta, Delhi, Lucknow and other Indian cities, forms a colourful backdrop for the emerging stories. On viewing the first look of the recently launched series trailer, we find ourselves on a stunning and atmospheric journey. A journey to post-independence India in the 1950s, with a bunch of ace actors such as Tabu, Ishaan Khatter, Tanya Manikatla, Rasika Dugal, Vijay Verma and Randeep Hooda as our guides.

About the Story

Andrew Davies condensed this great novel into six episodes for BBC1. Although, it is one of the longest ever written in the English language. The novel alternately offers satirical and earnest examinations of national political issues in the period leading up to the first post-independence national election of 1952, including Hindu-Muslim strife, the status of lower caste peoples such as the jatav, land reforms and the eclipse of the feudal princes and landlords, academic affairs, abolition of the Zamindari system, family relations and a range of further issues of importance to the characters. An epic family saga set in the 1950s, “A Suitable Boy” follows the journeys of Lata Mehra and Mann Sharma, who are finding their new, independent identity just as India grapples with its own new-found independence. 

Ishaan
Cinestan

This human, political and sensual chronicle of India gets direction from the critically-acclaimed Mira Nair. The whole previous Golden-Globe nominated film Monsoon Wedding gave us an insightful window into the life of a North Indian family preparing for a wedding. With locations spanning across the Indian subcontinent, “A Suitable Boy” promises to be a celebration. A celebration of the glorious sights and sounds our country has to offer. All brought to you in the delightfully, engrossing style of a BBC period drama.

The Characters

For those who are a fan of the book, here is what we know about the leading cast so far. Maan Kapoor gets the face of Ishaan Khatter. Saeeda Bai by Tabu. Lata Mehra by Tanya Maniktala, Rasheed by Vijay Verma, Savita Mehra by Rasika Dugal. Mahesh Kapoor by Ram Kapoor, Billy Irani by Randeep Hooda and Rupa Mehra by Mahira Kakkar. Its first episode is slated to air on the 26th of July later this month. We, for one, cannot wait to embark on the delightful journey this miniseries promises to take us on. We are eagerly waiting for the miniseries to set the over the top platforms on fire and the actors would be nailing it all down with their extraordinary performances.

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