Ranveer to Play Comic Book Superhero Nagraj?

Ranveer Singh will reportedly play comic book superhero Nagraj in a film.

(Photo Courtesy: Instagram; Raj Comics)

Ranveer Singh is in negotiations to play the role of the iconic Indian superhero Nagraj in a live-action, big-screen adaptation of the comicbook series, Manoj Gupta, president of publisher Raj Comics told PTI. The film will reportedly be produced by Karan Johar. However, no deals have been signed yet, said Gupta.

Nagraj, which means Snake King, was created in the late 1980s by Sanjay Gupta and published by Raj Comics. The first story on the fictional superhero was penned by Prashuram Sharma with illustrations by Pratap Mullik. Later, it was drawn by Sanjay Ashtputre, Chandu and Anupam Sinha.

Gupta said though the project is in initial stages of development, they are hoping for a 2022 release. “Everyone is extremely enthusiastic about the idea of making a Nagraj feature film. While other superhero films have been made in Bollywood before, this will be the first live-action adaptation of an Indian comicbook superhero,” he added.

Gupta previously had told PTI in September this year that the team is working towards adapting their comicbook characters for various mediums. “We are in talks to create a Banke Lal animated show for kids with a leading animation studio and a high-end 3D Nagraj animated film. We are also discussing live action web-series with various producers,” the director said.

Ranveer is set to star as former Indian skipper Kapil Dev in 83, with Deepika Padukone playing his wife Romi Bhatia. The Kabir Khan directorial is based on India’s historic win at the 1983 Cricket World Cup and also stars Pankaj Tripathi, Saqib Saleem, Tahir Raj Bhasin and Ammy Virk. It releases on 10 April 2020.

He also recently shared the first look of Jayeshbhai Jordaar, in which he plays a Gujarati boy and appears to have lost a lot of weight for the role. The film will be directed by debutant Divyang Thakkar and produced by Yash Raj Films.

(With inputs from PTI)