Shabana Azmi: Intended Kunti

Religion expert Alf Hiltebeitel?s Rethinking the Mahabharata and several books on Indian jewellery crowd the racks at his south Calcutta home. And though his forthcoming Bengali film on marital infidelity in a contemporary setting is keeping him busy, Rituparno Ghosh?s mind is often wandering into a bygone era of heroic men and strong-willed women.

Alongside writing the script for the yet-untitled Bengali feature ? shooting starts some time in June with Prosenjit and Konkona Sen Sharma ? Ghosh is also dabbling in homework of epic proportions. For the Mahabharata with a pan-Asian cast could well turn out to be his magnum opus.

With Draupadi as the epicentre, Ghosh intends to present an insider?s perspective of the historic battle, the dynamic characters and their worldview. ?It would be like watching the happenings from the andarmahal. The film will deal with the interiors and psychological complexities of the characters as in my other works,? says Ghosh, back home after attending the 3rd Annual South Asia Human Rights Film & Video Festival in New York and Film Fest DC in Washington with Raincoat and Chokher Bali.

?Ved Vyas will be an important character in my film and the fact that three dark-skinned people ? Ved Vyas, Arjun and Draupadi ? controlled the massive Aryan empire is vital here.?

Though translating the epic on to celluloid will require a huge canvas, the film-maker doesn?t want to mount it on a grand scale. Presently, he is busy hunting faces for the huge cast line-up.

Dimple Kapadia: Gandhari groove

?I want to cast Shabana (Azmi) as Kunti and Dimple (Kapadia) as Gandhari. For Bhishma, I am thinking of Naseer (Naseeruddin Shah). The roles of Arjun and Karna will require renowned names, but for the rest of the brothers I do not wish to take actors with a popular image.?

The character causing the maximum worry though is Draupadi herself, for whom Ghosh is looking for a ?dark-skinned? actress. If none of the Bollywood beauties fit the bill, the film-maker may well take his search to more exotic climes (think Egyptian or the like).

?I would prefer Asian actors from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art for most of the roles,?he adds.

Ghosh plans to start the Hindi-English bilingual venture by the year-end or early 2006, before switching to the other projects awaiting him. In queue are a Hindi film with Arindam Chaudhuri of Planman Life and Pritish Nandy Communications?s Saheb Bibi Ghulam. ?I have not decided yet, but if I do Saheb Bibi Ghulam, I will cast Jisshu Sengupta as Bhootnath,? he affirms.