The man behind the highly acclaimed Netflix series ‘Delhi Crime’ has reportedly (via Variety) been roped in to write, direct, and act as the showrunner to a series based on the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy. The series is being produced by noted producer Ronnie Screwvala and will be co-written by Shaun Mehta.
The series is ostensibly based on a book titled “Five Past Midnight in Bhopal” written by Dominique Lapierre and Javier Moro. This book was a result of years of painstaking research and several interviews of witnesses and participants involved in the tragic Bhopal Gas disaster. Besides, the book also follows the aftermath of the disaster and also revolves around the key people involved including the Chairman of the American firm Union Carbide – Warren Anderson.
Regarding the adaptation of the book into a series, Richie Mehta had stated (via Variety) that “The authors have done such a precise and fascinating job of mapping out the human story which creates a thread all through this disaster and is told in an impartial manner, which is very important to me as a storyteller to step back and allow the viewer to fill in that judgment, and in the case of something like this very harsh judgment, of course.”
Counted amongst the world’s worst industrial disasters, the Bhopal Disaster occurred in December 1984 at the infamous pesticide plant Union Carbide India Limited. Many numbers of residents of Bhopal and from nearby areas were affected by the leak of the highly toxic methyl isocyanate gas.
Previously, Academy-award-winning filmmaker Oliver Stone had also planned to make a film on the same subject. However, the film eventually got shelved. Besides, two prominent feature films have been made on the Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
The first one is the 1999 film ‘Bhopal Express’ starring Kay Kay Menon and helmed by Mahesh Mathai. Another film titled ‘Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain’ featured Martin Sheen, Kal Penn, Rajpal Yadav, and Satish Kaushik in important roles. This film was directed by Ravi Kumar and released in the year 2014.
Another critically acclaimed five-part series titles ‘Chernobyl’ was based on the events of the nuclear accident that occurred in the year 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. The series has become a benchmark of sorts when it comes to on-screen content based on real-life industrial disasters.
The makers of the upcoming Richie Mehta’s directorial Bhopal Gas Tragedy series has not collaborated with any streaming platforms as of now, reportedly for the sake of creative freedom. The series will likely comprise six to eight 60-minute episodes. The production would reportedly start in early 2022.
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