10 Bollywood Films Based On Fictional Works (Chetan Bhagat Not Mentioned)

Also Read: Do movies really do justice to the books they are adapted for?

Here are some of the famous Bollywood films adapted from famous literary works:

1. Lootera: Well, the first half of the film is the original but the second half when Pakhi falls sick is the beginning of the last leaf which was written by O Henry and the story was well utilized in the screenplay of the film.

2. Haider: Adapted from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet by Vishal Bhardwaj who was famous for creating iconic tales in his own way. The setting of hamlet is during the 1995 Kashmir Insurgency and the details were paid attention very well. The main highlight of this film were two Salmans who were the mirror of Hamlet’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

3. Maqbool: Another Shakespearean adaptation from Vishal Bhardwaj which is the backdrop of Mumbai Underworld in the 90s and the Lady Macbeth in this film is Nimmi who is the mistress to Abba Ji a powerful don in Mumbai who brainwashes her lover Maqbool into killing Abba Ji so that he would be the rightful heir of the throne.

4. Omkara: Shakespeare’s Othello set in the rural Uttar Pradesh where the goons and criminals are worshipped like gods. Just like every film by Vishal Bhardwaj, this was also packed with betrayal, infidelity, and jealousy. The main highlight of the film was Iago aka Langda Tyagi who was filled with hatred when he is pushed away from his post.

5. Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam: Well, yes as the film was slightly inspired from a Bengali novel Na Hanyate which revolved around themes like young love and opposition from the society. But Bhansali added melodrama into it which proved it to be successful.

6. Devdas: Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s iconic work which was adapted into different films by different directors and then Bhansali took it and added elements like alcoholism, childhood romance, aristocrat status and lust in it. The film immortalized the book like anything.

7. 7 Khoon Maaf: This was first written by Ruskin Bond as a short story titled Susanna's Seven Husbands. The film also had Ruskin Bond serving as the screenwriter for the film. The book was filled with a lot of dark elements.

8. Raazi: Meghna Gulzar’s first ever blockbuster starring Alia Bhatt in the lead was first a novel written by a brigadier Harinder Sikka who made the story as real as possible when he researched about it. The film gave full justice to the book.

9. Parineeta: Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s love story of Shekhar Roy and Lolita whose romance starts since childhood and then Shekhar’s father draws a wedge between them because of his greed and obsession with wealth. The film showed the richness in the Bengali culture.

10. Black Friday: Anurag Kashyap’s most controversial film which had its release date postponed frequently because of the hearings of the 1993 Bomb blasts and the riots which took place preceding the blasts. The film was released 3 years later and then was successful for its portrayal.

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