MUMBAI, June 6 (UPI) -- Netflix says it is working on an original series inspired by the best-selling novel Sacred Games by Indian author Vikram Chandra.
The Hindi-English drama will be shot in India and produced in partnership with the country's Phantom Films. No casting has been announced for the program, which will be Netflix's first original series from India.
Sacred Games is set in Mumbai and focuses on the "intricate web of organized crime, corruption, politics and espionage that lie beneath India's economic renaissance," a synopsis said. "It is an epic masterwork of exceptional richness and power that interweaves the lives of the privileged, the famous, the wretched and the bloodthirsty."
"Over the last few years, I've watched with great excitement and pleasure as Netflix has transformed narrative television with its ground-breaking, genre-bending shows," Chandra said in a statement Monday. "I'm confident that all the color and vitality and music of the fictional world I've lived with for so long will come fully alive on the large-scale canvas provided by Netflix. I'm thrilled to be working with Netflix and Phantom Films."
"We are very happy to start this journey with Netflix by producing Vikram's outstanding story, set in Mumbai," added Madhu Mantena of Phantom Films. "And we are extremely confident that, together we will create some exciting and groundbreaking television content from hereon."
"We are delighted to partner with creative powerhouse, Phantom Films, to bring Vikram Chandra's epic novel to life with the best Indian and global film talent available today," remarked Erik Barmack, vice president of international original series at Netflix. "Sacred Games reinforces our commitment to bring the authenticity of local stories to Netflix members across 190 countries worldwide."
