It's unlikely that anyone had an Archie Meets The Punisher crossover comic on their bingo card back in 1994. Nor did anyone expect Jughead Jones's insatiable hunger to be rooted in his lycanthropic lineage, or for him to face off against Veronica Lodge, who is turned into a vampire by a centuries-old bloodsucker. And yet, at some point, all of these events did occur in the Archie comics, which have charmed teenagers since the first edition was published in 1941. When filmmaker Zoya Akhtar was charged with depicting the never-ageing Riverdale teens in their first-ever live-action movie, she decided to place them in a fictional utopia set in Ooty, where dancing, singing, biking and picnicking need no occasion, and the only looming dark cloud seems to be Archie's doomed pursuit of both bookish Betty and vixenly Veronica. It's really what us '90s kids liked best about the original comics: they opened a portal to a place where nothing could go wrong even as realworld threats the onset of global warming, recession, skinny jeans-closed in on us.
As luck would have it or should I say 'luck by chance'-the film fell into Akhtar's lap serendipitously. "I had a meeting with Sharad Devarajan, co-founder of Graphic India, who contacted me because he wanted me to adapt another comic," says the director. "While we were speaking, I happened to tell him that I'm a huge fan of the Archie comics. He said, 'Oh, it's ours and we just leased it to Netflix.' In my head, it was gone since it had been handed over to a streaming platform. The next thing you know, he spoke with Netflix and they contacted me to ask if I would like to make the film."
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Denne historien er fra September - October 2023-utgaven av VOGUE India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Breathe In, Breathe Out
A powerful tool to help you master your nervous system or another biohacking buzzword? SIMONE DHONDY explores the inhalations and exhalations of breathwork
Red Pill, Blue Pill
India's nutraceutical industry is booming thanks to advanced technology, distrust of the medical system and rising vanity. With multivitamins becoming purer and more effective, NIDHI GUPTA finds out if supplements have become the new serum
Sign of the times
No longer do you need to have an answer to, \"What is the significance of this?\" when people point to your new tattoo. ARMAN KHAN discovers that everything is on the table when you get inked temporarily
Return to form
Watching the world's most elite athletes deliver the best performances of their careers rekindled SONAKSHI SHARMA's own love for sports
Dimple, All Day
YOU MAY HAVE WATCHED HER ON THE BIG SCREEN FOR OVER FIVE DECADES, BUT DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF ASSUMING THAT YOU KNOW DIMPLE KAPADIA.
MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL
As someone who had always sought safety in numbers, ALIZA FATMA often wondered what her own company would feel like. The answer arrived unexpectedly when she attended her first-ever music festival, one of the largest in the world, all alone
Let it grow
When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running
YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE
When armless archer Sheetal Devi set her sights on the Paralympic Games this year, she knew she had a tough journey ahead of her. Luckily, her mother was with her every step of the way.
Beauty and the feast
The appeal of Indian weddings has always been in a sprawling spread. For additional bragging rights, Aditi Dugar recommends going beyond designer tablecloths and monogrammed napkins.
Sweet serendipity
From a scavenger hunt-inspired proposal to a Moroccan-themed baraat, Malvika Raj and Armaan Rai's love story prioritised playfulness throughout their blended celebrations.
