Abhishek Dudhaiya reimagines Iago from Othello as a woman for his play Junoon

Shabana Azmi, Tabu and Neetu Kapoor

Four years after helming the Ajay Devgn-led war drama Bhuj: The Pride of India (2021), director Abhishek Dudhaiya is back - but not on celluloid. He is writing and producing the play, Junoon, a modern-day adaptation of the Shakespearean tragedy, Othello. "I love Shakespeare's writing as it has strong characters and drama. Of so many [Indian] adaptations of Othello, the only modern one was Vishal Bhardwaj's Omkara [2006]," he reflects.

Originally, Dudhaiya had written the adaptation as a web series. But before taking it on OTT, the writer and producer wanted to gauge its effectiveness as a story. After all, he has made a significant change in the story - Iago, a principal character who manipulates Othello and sets off a chain of events, has been imagined as a woman in his adaptation. "I have made Iago into a female character, to be played by a senior actor. I have also made her older than what he was in Shakespeare's Othello. In Junoon, she is called Ranjana and shares a complex relationship with Othello."

Abhishek Dudhaiya

Iago is easily among the most deliciously dark characters from Shakespeare's mind. For the role, Dudhaiya has drawn a wish list of actors - Shabana Azmi, Neetu Kapoor, and Tabu. "I'm in talks with a couple of actresses right now, and I have given them the script to read. Once we sign someone, we will announce the name," says the producer, who will also serve as the creative director of Junoon. For the roles of Othello and Desdemona, Dudhaiya has zeroed in on debutant actors Aryan Mehta and Hancy.