Writer-director Zoya Akhtar's oeuvre includes a tale about strugglers in Bollywood Luck By Chance); follows the journey of an aspiring rapper from the Mumbai slums (Gully Boy); a dysfunctional Punjabi family aboard a cruise ship (Dil Dhadakne Do) and three friends on a road trip in Spain Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara).
Her latest, The Archies, though is not just her first-period flick but also recreates the youngest, most idyllic world. Based on the popular American comic book series, The Archies, which drops on Netflix on December 7, is set in 1960s India where Riverdale is a hill station that's home to the Anglo-Indian community.
It celebrates the innocence of youth as well as its resilience and more significantly friendship. And it does so with songs, which build a mood and express a character's sentiment.
The Archies stands out in Akhtar's filmography also because unlike her other four features she was offered to direct this one, with both Graphic India and Netflix keen to have her on board. "It came out of the blue. I never thought I wanted to do it. I never thought I could do it," says Akhtar. The Archie, Betty and Veronica love triangle have been seen in various iterations in Hindi films like Bobby, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. What made it exciting for Akhtar was that the companies "wanted it to be the original characters". She joined hands with Reema Kagti, her writing partner for over a decade now [has been a friend longer], and coowner of their production house, Tiger Baby, as well as Ayesha DeVitre (Kapoor & Sons, Gehraiyaan) to develop it. Says Kagti, "I think when we got the film, what blew my mind was that this is the first Archies film and we are getting to do it out of India."
Playing Innocent
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Denne historien er fra December 11, 2023-utgaven av India Today.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prÞveperiode pÄ Magzter GOLD for Ä fÄ tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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He gave the beat to the world
He would pick up the rhythms of each experience of mobility and weave them into his taals. Thus it was that he reflected joy and laughter in rhythmic cycles...such was the magic of Zakir's fingersText and photographs by Raghu Rai
KERALA TOURISM CAMPAIGN, 1989 - TICKETS TO PARADISE
All it took was a catchy tagline-'God's Own Country'-for the world to discover Kerala's wealth of natural beauty. It remains among the best tourism ad campaigns, earning the state a place among top 10 international destinations
SPIRITUALITY - THE GURUS OF COOL
Among the cult Indian gurus, no one had a bigger hold on western minds than 'Osho' Rajneesh. He's also perhaps the role model for the enterprise-building gurus of today
RETAIL SHOPPING - THE MALL MANIA
Shopping malls, a 1990s innovation in India, changed the way the Indian middle class shops. Their success now lies in being 'shoppertainment' destinations, offering something for everyone
CULINARY RENAISSANCE, 1978 - TANDOORI NIGHTS
ITC's Bukhara and Dum Pukht turned the world to tandoori cuisine and had an enormous impact on the F&B industry. Decades on, they are still a pit-stop for celebrities and heads of state visiting Delhi
INDIAN WRITING IN ENGLISH - REVENGE OF THE NATIVE
Rushdie lit the way but Indian writing in English has taken a life of its own in the past few decades, with translated Indian fiction most recently having its moment in the sun
INDIAN ART - A BRUSH WITH GOLD DUST
The 1990s economic liberalisation came as oxygen, lighting up the Indian art scene. Today, artworks by established masters routinely go for astronomical amounts
FESTIVAL OF INDIA, 1982 - CULTURE CAPITAL
The Festival of India grew into a symbol of our 'soft power', introducing our art and aesthetics to a global audience while also helping rebrand our domestic products
THE INDIPOP TREND - DISCO GOES DESI
For ages, the film song ruled. Nothing else was audible. Then came Nazia, charioteered by Biddu, and Indian ears went into a pleasant madness. Literally, Disco Deewane. A whole genre was born
SHOLAY 1975 - THE BIRTH OF THE FANDEMIC
India had seen hits before. But Sholay seared into its collective psyche like a badland bullet. The effect was on a scale never seen before- one film creating a new mass folk culture. And a trail of monster blockbusters that still continues
