Phoolan Devi story set to return as web series

A quarter century after Shekhar Kapur's "Bandit Queen" generated a massive worldwide buzz following its premiere in Directors' Fortnight in 1994, the epochal film's producer, Bobby Bedi, has firmed up plans for a 20-episode web series on the life and death of Phoolan Devi, the dreaded Chambal dacoit-turned-Member of Parliament who was assassinated in the heart of Delhi in July 2001.

The web series, titled "Phoolan Devi", will be directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia, with Tannishtha Chatterjee taking on the role of the protagonist. Dhulia was the casting director of "Bandit Queen".

Like Seema Biswas, who shot to fame with the Cannes hit from 25 years ago, Tannishtha is a National School of Drama (NSD) alumna. But that is where, the producer says, the similarity between the two productions will end.

Speaking on the sidelines of the 72nd Cannes Film Festival, Bedi reveals that the web series will go into production within the next few months. It will be spread out over two seasons of 10 episodes