Ever since the trailer for Nikkhil Advani’s The Empire, a Mughal-era series, dropped, netizens have been making its comparisons with popular HBO fantasy drama Game of Thrones, which has spent several years as a worldwide sensation, winning awards, critical praise, and diehard fans along the way. Many pointed out several thematic similarities between the two shows, from familial intrigue and power struggles to sword fights and epic battle scenes. Like GoT, the Empire also looks like a visual extravaganza paired with a gripping narrative.
When we asked The Empire director Mitakshara Kumar about the comparisons, she said, “I hadn’t seen The Game of Thrones while we were shooting the Empire. I didn’t want to watch it because I didn’t want to get influenced by the show. Now, I have. I saw it in May this year. I quite liked it but that’s more like a fantasy drama. I don’t agree if you just see two people fighting and a battle scene and start making comparisons. But if people are saying it (The Empire) is looking like that then it’s a compliment that I humbly accept.”
Shot across multiple locations in India and Uzbekistan, The Empire showcases elaborate sets and vast landscapes. The 8-episode series is based on ‘Empire of the Moghul: Raiders from the North’ by Alex Rutherford.
The period drama boasts a strong ensemble cast including actors Shabana Azmi, Drashti Dhami, Dino Morea, Aditya Seal, Sahher Bambba, and Rahul Dev, among others.
Mitakshara, who is making her directorial debut with the Disney+ Hotstar series, previously worked as a chief assistant director under Bhansali Productions for several years. Talking about her experience working on the series, she said, “All the training that Sanjay Leela Bhansali gave me I put it on this show. This is my vision. It’s a very big show that came my way and I just tried to be honest with my characters and the storyline. We have created this show with a lot of hard work and detailing.”
She further said that adapting the book into a screenplay was “the most difficult task”. “The book has a lot of details and it’s very tricky to choose exactly what you want to show on screen. Also, when you bring its characters on screen, you have to show its whole journey which requires the efforts of so many people from costume designers to set designers and direction team. We almost took a year and a half to make this show. So, it’s been a very long process.”
The Empire follows a young prince who is tasked with taking over the entire Kingdom of Ferghana after its King dies in an accident. The series will start streaming on Disney+ Hotstar from August 27.
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