‘The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company’, a book written by historian William Dalrymple, is set to be adapted for the screen.
The book, which tells the story of how one of the world’s most biggest empires, the Mughal empire, disintegrated and came to be replaced by the British East India Company, will be turned into a series.
The book won accolades as President Barack Obama’s top 10 recommended books and was also the recipient of the 2019 Baillie Gifford Prize.
Acclaimed screenwriter Jeremy Brock has been entrusted with the task of adapting the book for the screen. Brock is a BAFTA winning writer, director and producer, best known for his work in ‘Her Majesty Mrs Brown’, ‘The Last King of Scotland’, ‘Driving Lessons’, and ‘How I Live Now’.
With a career spanning over two decades, Brock is a member of both the American and British Academies.
The production will be done by global independent studio WIIP and India’s Roy Kapur Films. Executive producers on the project include Paul Lee, Siddharth Roy Kapur and Naz Haider. Dalrymple will serve as a creative consultant.
Talking about the project, Siddharth Roy Kapur said, “We are delighted to announce that we have brought on board the acclaimed BAFTA award winning screenwriter Jeremy Brock to adapt William Dalrymple’s global bestseller ‘The Anarchy’ into a premium series.
“Jeremy’s expertise in crafting intricate character-driven narratives that are deeply rooted in history and setting them against a huge canvas makes him the perfect collaborator for this project. We look forward to creating a globally-relevant series that will appeal to audiences across geographies, languages and cultures.”
‘The Anarchy’ will be mounted as an international co-production to be produced across the US, the UK and India.
