Abhishek Bachchan joins his dad in forthcoming fantasy flick

Vinod Chopra Films’ Talismaan starring Amitabh Bachchan now also includes Abhishek Bachchan and Sanjay Dutt.

Talismaan is a romantic fantasy adventure inspired by epic novel, Chandrakanta, written in 1892 by Babu Devaki Nandan Khatri. It interweaves and mixes elements of magic, fantasy and war. The shooting of Talismaan will commence from early 2009.

There are rumours that Talismaan is inspired by Lord Of The Rings and Harry Potter, but director Ram Madhvani says, “Vinod gave me a book to read Chandrakanta, written 50 years before Lord Of The Rings and 100 years before Harry Potter. I was amazed at its ideas and fantasy elements. He set me off on a journey. Talismaan is a love story, a fantasy and uses magic. It has a unique Indianness and yet is modern and contemporary. It’s time we had a fantasy film we can call our own and one we can be proud off. Talismaan is my attempt to do just that.”

When quizzed about rumours about Talismaan being shelved because of its costly budget, Ram states, “If the film was shelved, believe me I would be the first to know. We are proceeding as per schedule. The film is very heavy on special effects etc and therefore a lot of time is being spent on pre-production. The storyboarding, concept art etc, requires detailing and research. It’s not a film you write the script for and then go on the floors to shoot it straightaway,” he concludes.

Amitabh Bachchan says, “Yes, we (Abhishek and him) are in talks and should finalise shortly. It would be unethical to talk about it till then.”

Sanjay Dutt says, “Vinod sir and Ram narrated the script to me and I was blown away. Talismaan is a journey I am looking forward to.”

It’s the story of prince Virendra Singh, who is in love with the princess of a rival kingdom, Chandrakanta.

Thrown into this love story is a magical maze in an old abandoned fort which guards a huge treasure trove. Virendra Singh and Chandrakanta have to ensure that their love wins against evil villains like King Shivdutt of another kingdom, who wants to capture the treasure. Also after the treasure are ‘aiyyars’ or super-spies who have the magical powers of transforming themselves into another person, and are experts in all modes of warfare.