Indian director Shekhar Kapur has signed a deal to direct TV series of historical novels by Amitav Ghosh. The series will be called Ibis Trilogy! The report has been confirmed on Variety and the TV series will have books such as Sea of Poppies, River of Smoke and Flood of Fire, which will have a backdrop of the narcotics trade between Britain, India and China. The TV series will also emphasise on the Opium Wars that took place in the mid-19th century in Asia.

On the same, Kapur stated, “I have always been fascinated that the drug trade was the engine for the Industrial Revolution,” and further added, “Amitav Gosh’s books brilliantly bring out the vast epic and emotional tale of opium, from its beginnings in India where it is grown and onto China where it is pushed by drug lords. The story also follows the journeys of indentured labour from India to colonies around the world and tells the intriguing tales of people from India, America and China at a time when modern history was being formed.” Narcos in Mexico, Netflix Makes Fans Go Berserk With This Masterstroke!

For the project, Endemol Shine has roped in Justin Pollard of Pirates of the Caribbean fame as the story editor. A lead writer is yet to be appointed by the production house. Lars Blomgren, head of scripted entertainment in Europe, the Middle East and Asia at Endemol Shine Group told Variety, “Our ambition is to create a major high-end franchise for the international market, matching the scale and epic sweep of the Ibis novels. This deal represents our group collaborating at its best, creating an exotic, never before seen tale with wide audience appeal." With such an intriguing topic chosen, we are curious to know what the makers plan to present.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 25, 2019 05:53 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).