Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Rajkummar Rao and Adarsh Gourav-starrer film ‘The White Tiger’ was quite a hit among the masses when it released in late January this year. The fictional movie is based on a 2008 novel by Aravind Adiga, which is a story of a driver in India who rises to become a successful businessman despite the stratified caste system. The film received a nomination in best ‘Adapted Screenplay’ category in Academy Awards 2021. 

But how did it take over 12 years for ‘The White Tiger’ to get to the big screen?

Aravind’s novel first published in 2008 and won the Man Booker Prize that same year. According to a report by Associated Press, many tried to get a film adaptation of the book for years but failed as it was destined for only one person, filmmaker Ramin Bahrani. Aravind wanted Ramin to direct ‘The White Tiger’ so badly that he literally wrote ‘For Ramin Bahrani’ on the second page of the book.

Also read: Actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas thanks fans for their support for ‘The White Tiger’

Aravind and Ramin were friends since the 1990s and so Ramin had the opportunity to read through the drafts of the novel before it was even published. He was quick to point out that an ‘epic story’ like this needed heavy financing and resources to get it made in India, but its time of arrival in the market made it more difficult. Since ‘Slumdog Millionaire’s’ release, the two and producer Mukul Deora were apprehensive about Indian film studios taking up the ‘The White Tiger’ project.

That’s when Netflix appeared as a helping hand. “They (Netflix) were hungry for it,” Ramin told the Associated Press. “They have an appetite for global stories, for voices that are not typically represented behind a camera or in front of the camera,” he said.

And the novel’s protagonist is just that. The character didn’t enjoy any privileges growing up and was hungry for the same. According to a media report, many big movie stars showed their interest in playing the character but Bahrani had other plans. He said since the story is about an underdog from the underclass, it “should be played by an Indian, hopefully, an unknown India” and so they shortlisted Adarsh.

The film promised Adarsh good global recognition and delivered the same. The 26-year-old has been recently nominated for the leading actor category at the 2021 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards. The film, too, has bagged a nomination for BAFTA’s adapted screenplay category.