Nagraj Manjule credits ‘Game of Thrones’ for opening his eyes to OTT storytelling

Filmmaker Nagraj Manjule, the director behind hits such as "Fandry", "Sairat" and "Jhund", says his foray on OTT with Vijay Varma-starrer "Matka King" wasn't a calculated move but a creative shift after hit fantasy drama "Game of Thrones" showed him the unique potential of long-form storytelling.

"There was no such thing as to whether I should do it or not to do it (make OTT show). When this idea came, I was like, 'Let's do it'. When I met Sid (Siddharth Roy Kapur, producer) sir, he said he was also thinking of this subject.

"We were already working on it with Ashwini ji (Sidhwani, producer), Ashish ji (Aryan, writer) and me. So, we worked on it together, Amazon liked it very much, and the work started," Manjule told PTI in an interview.

The "Sairat" director said "Game of Thrones", the hit HBO drama based on GRR Martin's books, was the first OTT show he watched during the lockdown and it changed how he viewed storytelling.

"Many people told me to watch this show. When I saw it, I enjoyed it a lot. I realised it (OTT) has a different strength. When you watch it, you keep (binge) watching a long story. So, I had liked the show, 'Game of Thrones'," the filmmaker, who predominately makes Marathi-language films, said.

"Matka King" follows the story of Brij Bhatti, a sharp-minded and enterprising cotton trader, who navigates the fast-changing landscape of 1960s Bombay in pursuit of legitimacy and respect.

The eight-episode series is set against a world of bustling markets, crowded chawls, and shifting power dynamics. What begins as an ambitious idea soon takes on a life of its own, drawing in people across social strata.

Manjule, known for narrating stories of caste oppression in films like "Fandry", "Sairat", Jhund" and his short movie "Pistulya", said "Matka King" is different from his previous work.

He said filmmaking is all about following instincts than following trends an added that he wants to continue to expand his horizon.

"Whatever stories I like, I'll make. I neither follow the formula of success, nor am I afraid of failure. I'm a human and I can make mistakes as well. But I'll like to take on that chance and have that freedom to explore something new as that will push me," Manjule, who is set to make a period film on wrestling, titled "Khashaba", said.

Referring to titles like "Homebound" and "Dhurandhar", he said that filmmakers should stay true to their voice.

"We have a wide variety of films being made like 'Homebound', 'Sabar Bonda', 'Dhurandhar' and 'Pushpa'. Those who can make 'Dhurandhar', 'Sabar Bonda' and 'Homebound' should make those kinds of films, and not formula kind of films because something has worked," he said.

Manjule said his own childhood memories of playing Matka helped him in creating the world of "Matka King", which is set to debut on April 17 on Prime Video. He recalled how he would place bets on behalf of others in the Matka system.

"The elder people used to tell me to go and do it (place a bet) at a paan or tea shop for one or two rupees, which was a big amount then. I would remember exactly what they said and go and play Matka. But I've never played Matka for myself.

"I've seen the world and its system. My friends knew it very well and they used to play Matka, I talked to them and understood these things when I was doing this series."

"Matka King" also stars Kritika Kamra, Gulshan Grover, Sai Tamhankar, Siddharth Jadhav, Girish Kulkarni, and Jamie Lever among others.

The series is produced by Manjule, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Gargi Kulkarni, Ashwini Sidwani, and Ashish Aryan, under the banners of Roy Kapur Films, Aatpat, and SMR Productions.