After Binodini, Rukmini Maitra to play Draupadi on big screen

After the biopic on theatre legend Binodini Das, actor Rukmini Maitra has teamed up with director Ram Kamal Mukherjee for another magnum opus. This time, they are set to bring the timeless tale of Draupadi to the big screen.

The Bengali film, produced by actor-politician Dev and Prateek Chakravorty, is based on noted author Pratibha Ray’s award-winning Odia novel ‘Yajnaseni’. “It’s always a delight to work with Ram Kamal. He has wanted to make Draupadi for a long time. This will definitely be one of the most challenging roles in my career after Binodiini,” said Rukmini, who will also be seen as Satyajit in the Dev-starrer ‘Byomkesh O Durgo Rahasya’.

Presently, the director is wrapping up the post-production work of ‘Binodiini Ekti Natir Upakhyan’. At the same time, he is working on the screenplay for ‘Draupadi’. “I don't remember the last time Bengali cinema produced a mythological film. Both Rukmini and I know that we need to work hard on this film,” he said.

The director also informed that the rest of the cast would be finalised after the completion of the screenplay. Also, the team would need at least four months of pre-production and workshops before hitting the floors.

Meanwhile, Dev saw Rukmini’s performance in ‘Binodiini’ and realised why the director was keen on casting her as Draupadi. “When he shared his dream of making ‘Draupadi’, I felt that he would certainly do justice to the scale and subject. As a producer, the uniqueness of the subject intrigued me,” he said.