Joker in Saheb Bibi Golam adaptation based on Heath Ledger's Joker from Dark Knight?

After Bharate, Anindya Ghosh's next is a tribute to Abrar Alvi's black-and-white opus starring Rehman, Guru Dutt and Meena Kumari
When Bimal Mitra wrote Saheb Bibi Golam, he not just held up the mirror to a decadent feudal society but also disrupted the narrative of marriage being a sacrosanct institution. The Indian screen has seen many adaptations of the novel, some of which find pride of place in the history of Indian cinema.
Though Bollywood revisited the novel time and again, Bengal's most famous tryst with it remains Kartick Chattopadhyay's film with Chhabi Biswas, Uttam Kumar and Sumitra Devi in 1956. Now, Anindya Ghosh and Avishek Ghosh, who burst onto Tollywood with the lukewarm Bharate, are gearing up to gift the audience a modern-day version of the novel, titled Saheb Bibi & Joker.
Arunima Ghosh has already been locked as Bibi and talks are on to cast two big names as Saheb and Joker. Says Avishek, who is helming the production, ���We want to make a movie which is racier, raunchier and more present-day than all other versions. Ours will be a tribute to Abrar Alvi's adaptation ��� Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam ��� with Guru Dutt and Meena Kumari. We will be subverting the original without trivializing it."
Anindya, who is set to wield the megaphone for the second time, says his movie is both modern and semi-urban. ���It's not a big-canvas story like Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas. But the canvas will be as big as the story demands. The classic novel has always been lapped up by the Indian audiences and we are inspired by its immense popularity. In fact, Rituda (Rituparno Ghosh) too wanted to make a television series on the novel. I have not just seen the black-and-white Hindi opus and Uttam Kumar's cult Bengali version, but also the modern takes ��� Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster and Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster Returns. And I loved all of them. Though Bollywood has come up with modern takes, Bengal hasn't seen any," says the director.
Throwing light on his Joker, Anindya adds that the team thought the name was apt, as the character brings a lot of laughter into Bibi's life. ���He is funny alright. But there's more to him than just that," he adds.
Avishek goes on to say, ���We are trying to etch out the character keeping Heath Ledger's Joker (in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight) in mind. There will be many twists and turns." If Ledger's character is the inspiration then the production team is setting the bar very high and the actor who is chosen for the role will have his task cut out.
Arunima, who is excited about getting under the skin of Bibi, says she and Anindya go back a long way. ���I know him since 2003. Also, Avishek is a friend. We shared a great camaraderie while doing Bharate and that's the reason why we could wrap up the shoot in a short span of time. Though I have not read the script yet, I'm looking forward to playing an iconic character."