‘Chakra The Invincible’
The legendary comic book writer Stan Lee is all set to conquer Bollywood as his Indian superhero ‘Chakra The Invincible’ gets a live-action theatrical film.
Super heroes such as Spider Man, Iron Man, X-Men and Hulk have an indelible impression on the childhood of many. So much so that even kids in India follow them. They have captured the imagination of teens so well across the globe that subsequently films have been made on these characters and needless to say those movies have become iconic. The man whose creativity has shaped these superheroes is Stan Lee. Born in Manhattan, now 93, this comic book writer even created an Indian super hero – Chakra – in 2013. So far an animated film on Cartoon Network India along with comic books, games, toys and other merchandise have been released. Lee though had been eyeing Bollywood since then.
The character was conceptualised in association with Sharad Devarajan who has co-founded Graphic India that is owned by U.S. comic book Company, Liquid Comics and CA Media LP, the Asian investment arm of The Chernin Group, LLC (TCG). The animated movie was produced by Graphic India and POW! Entertainment that is chaired by Lee himself.
Debut on the big screen
Finally, Lee’s Indian superhero is going to be in a Bollywood film that will be produced by Graphic India and POW! Entertainment in partnership with Mumbai-based Phantom Films. The film will be directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, the Indian film director whose directorial debut Udaan (2010) was featured in Cannes under the ‘Un Certain Regard category’, who’s also a co-founder of Phantom Films. Lee is very excited about Motwane directing the film and says, “Vikramaditya is an amazingly talented filmmaker who I have no doubt can make the Chakra film a massive hit in India and around the world. I only hope he remembers to include my cameo.”
He is equally excited about entering Bollywood (Hindi film industry) that is loved by a majority of people in India. “I am a fan of Bollywood films and am really excited about launching ‘Chakra the Invincible’ as my first Bollywood superhero movie,” says an enthusiastic Lee.
The animated version of Chakra had also been a hit as Gill Champion, president and CEO of POW! Entertainment says, “We have always been proud of our global fan base and the reception for the animated Chakra series has been overwhelming and we couldn’t be more exciting about the prospect of bringing a real-life Chakra film to fans everywhere on the big screen.”
Chakra is based on a young Indian boy ‘Raju Rai’ with Mumbai in the backdrop and shows his journey of battling the super villains of the city by weaponising his. For its big screen debut makers are moving away from showcasing a young boy and would rather feature a young man in his 20s. Motwane believes that with Chakra they hope to take comic film making to the next level. The budget and releasing date for the film, though, have not been disclosed until now.