Of late, iconic English poet-writer William Shakespeare has become a big favourite, thanks mainly to Vishal Bhardwaj, among Bollywood directors. Currently, at least three filmmakers are believed to be working on an adaptation of the Bard’s tragic drama, Hamlet. News is that Bhardwaj too, according to trade, is ready to work on adapting the classic now. It will be interesting to see Bhardwaj’s take on the tale since he has already adapted Macbeth (in Maqbool; 2003) and Othello (for Omkara; 2006) successfully in the past. Although Vishal couldn’t be reached for a comment, trade insiders insist that he is definitely in the mood to complete the trilogy now.

The filmmaker, around the release of Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola earlier this year, too had stated that he would definitely like to complete a trilogy of tragedies following on from Maqbool and Omkara with either Hamlet, King Lear or Richard III. “I have to do Shakespeare again, but not so soon. You will hopefully see me return to it sometime in the future,” he had said then. At the same time, My Brother Nikhil (2005) maker Onir, is also working on an adaptation.

Last year, it was reported that he would flag off his take on Hamlet by the year-end by transporting the Shakespearean play from Denmark to the corporate world of today’s London and Lucknow. Similarly, National Award-winning director Tigmanshu Dhulia is also supposed to start working on an adaptation (for producer Goldie Behl) after wrapping up the Saif Ali Khan-starrer Bullet Raja and Imran Khan-Priyanka Chopra-starrer Milan Talkies. Interestingly, reports are rife that, if not Hamlet, Bhardwaj might go ahead with a King Lear adaptation or Kaminey 2, a sequel to his 2009 hit.