Latest news with #JeffreyArcher
Time of India
05-08-2025
- Business
- Time of India
From Scam to Sagas: Applause expands slate with Archer titles
As streaming platforms ramp up their demand for scalable IP and cross-market appeal, Indian content studios are increasingly looking beyond domestic formats and entering the global literary market. Applause Entertainment , backed by the Aditya Birla Group , is the latest to make a move, acquiring exclusive screen rights to six novels by British author Jeffrey Archer . The acquisition, which includes The Clifton Chronicles, Fourth Estate, First Among Equals, The Eleventh Commandment, Sons of Fortune, and Heads You Win , marks Applause's first foray into global fiction IP . While notable, the development fits into a broader trend of Indian studios building slates that can travel across languages, territories, and platforms. Applause plans to adapt them as series and films across multiple Indian languages and distribution platforms, including global streaming services. 'We have just closed the deal and now we are getting started in earnest,' said Sameer Nair, managing director of Applause Entertainment. 'We want to move fast. The idea is to identify a showrunner or creative director for each title and begin working on adaptation, deciding the context, setting, and treatment.' Nair added that the studio hopes to have at least one or two properties entering the pre-production phase in the next three to six months. 'Everything we develop will be run past Jeffrey Archer and will go through our own iteration process. We want to make sure we're doing justice to the original material, while also adapting it meaningfully for screen,' he said. From local books to global IP Applause's earlier successes have largely come from Indian non-fiction adaptations like Scam 1992 and Black Warrant and scripted versions of international formats including Criminal Justice, Hostages, Call My Agent . This move into global fiction marks a strategic expansion geared toward meeting a rising demand for high-concept IP that can be localised but is inherently global in theme and structure. 'Jeffrey Archer's stories are sagas, not single-incident plots,' said Nair. 'They lend themselves to both long-form drama and feature films, depending on how we reimagine them.' While Archer's books are widely read in India, Nair acknowledged that a large segment of India's tier II and tier III viewers may not be familiar with them. 'The larger Indian mass has not heard these stories. That's the excitement you can take these stories to them. Once it comes on a streamer or platform, it reaches,' he said. He drew a parallel with Scam 1992, which was based on Sucheta Dalal and Debashis Basu's book The Scam. 'I don't think many people had read the book before the show came out, but more people saw the show. Hopefully, that encouraged some to go read the book,' Nair said. 'We only used a small part of it but the book itself is far deeper.' Stabilising and expanding Applause's expansion comes at a time when the Indian content market is undergoing a cost correction, following years of aggressive investment between 2020 and 2023. Several production houses were forced to scale back due to unsustainable content spends and shifting platform strategies. However, Applause has avoided major disruption by maintaining cost discipline. 'We've always been frugal,' said Nair. 'When others were spending INR 100-INR 200 crore on a single show, we were building profitable units. All our projects aim to recover cost and make a margin. That allows us to reinvest continuously.' He estimated that the company has already invested and reinvested over INR 2,500–INR 3,000 crore and continues to operate on a reinvestment-led growth model. 'There's no fixed number for how much we will invest in the next two years,' Nair said. 'We just keep doing it.' Applause evaluates all projects on a unit economics basis, aiming for profitability at the project level rather than relying solely on large upfront investments or slate deals. While budgets have come under pressure, Nair said the overall outlook for the industry is positive. 'There was a lot of pressure on content cost in the past couple of years, but now things are levelling out. It's fair, platforms also need to be profitable,' he said. Alongside the literary acquisition, Applause is also diversifying its production slate with a growing focus on theatrical films and digital-first animation . The company has signed filmmakers Kabir Khan and Imtiaz Ali for upcoming Hindi projects and is producing a Tamil feature film Bison with director Mari Selvaraj, targeted for release around Diwali. Nair said the move into theatrical films is a natural extension of the studio's capabilities. 'Hopefully, in the next couple of years, you'll see us as a major movie studio,' he said. In the kids content space, Applause launched a YouTube channel ApplaToon earlier this year, leveraging its animation rights to Amar Chitra Katha 's intellectual property. The channel, aimed at a digital-first audience, focuses on mythological and historical narratives. 'YouTube turned out to be the most effective distribution channel for children's content,' Nair said. 'Many streamers and broadcasters are currently re-evaluating their kids' programming slates, but YouTube remains consistent. We've made a strong start and we plan to build aggressively in that direction.' For Applause, the Archer collaboration is not a one-off prestige play, but part of a deliberate expansion into IP-driven content development. 'This is a milestone moment for us,' Nair added. 'To reimagine these stories with scale and style, and position them for audiences across the globe, that's the creative opportunity we're excited about.'
Hindustan Times
05-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
English author Jeffrey Archer's stories to be on screen! Now read... No, watch it on OTT, films worldwide
It's a boundary shot for fans of gripping storytelling — six iconic novels by bestselling author Jeffrey Archer are set to be adapted for screen by an Indian content and IP creation studio, Applause Entertainment. Author Jeffrey Archer's stories will soon be adapted for the screen.(Photo: X) The titles being adapted include The Clifton Chronicles, Fourth Estate, First Among Equals, The Eleventh Commandment, Sons of Fortune and Heads You Win — each spanning genres from political drama and espionage to media wars and sweeping family sagas. Known for his pacy narratives, intricate plots and memorable characters, Archer's stories offer a cinematic canvas that's ripe for adaptation across languages and platforms. Speaking about the development, Archer said, 'I've always had a deep fondness for India, a nation that has embraced my stories like its own. As an ardent cricket lover, it's a country I feel incredibly connected to. I'm thrilled to see my characters and stories take on a new life, across India, and far beyond.' The adaptations will take shape as premium series and feature films, reimagining Archer's works for a new generation of viewers. For more, follow HT City Delhi Junction
News18
04-08-2025
- Entertainment
- News18
Applause Entertainment acquires rights to 6 Jeffrey Archer novels
Agency: PTI Last Updated: Mumbai, Aug 4 (PTI) Applause Entertainment has acquired the exclusive screen rights to six of Jeffrey Archer's most famous novels, including 'The Clifton Chronicles", 'Fourth Estate" and 'The Eleventh Commandment". Spanning political drama, espionage, media power struggles, and multi-generational family sagas, these six titles offer a vast and versatile narrative canvas, rooted in Archer's signature style of pace, plot twists, and character-driven storytelling, a release said here. Applause will reimagine and develop these stories into premium series and feature films across languages and platforms, bringing Archer's world to screen. Sameer Nair, Managing Director, Applause Entertainment, said, 'This is a milestone moment for us. We've told stories reimagined from Indian books, formats, and real events and now we step into the world of global fiction. 'Jeffrey Archer's novels are compelling, character-rich, and built for screen. To reimagine these stories with scale and style, and to position them for audiences across the globe, that's the creative opportunity we're excited about." Archer said it was an absolute pleasure to collaborate with Nair and the team at Applause Entertainment. 'Their passion for storytelling, their body of work, and their global outlook make them the perfect partners to bring my books to screen. 'I've always had a deep fondness for India, a nation that has embraced my stories like its own and as an ardent cricket lover, it's a country I feel incredibly connected to. I'm thrilled to see my characters and stories take on a new life, across India, and far beyond," he added. The other three books that Applause has acquired are 'First Among Equals", 'Sons of Fortune" and 'Heads You Win". PTI BK SKY view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Time of India
04-08-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Applause Entertainment acquires screen rights to adapt six Jeffrey Archer novels
Applause Entertainment has acquired the exclusive screen rights to six novels by bestselling British author Jeffrey Archer . The selected titles include The Clifton Chronicles , Fourth Estate, First Among Equals, The Eleventh Commandment, Sons of Fortune, and Heads You Win. This marks the Indian content studio 's first acquisition of international fiction rights. Applause plans to adapt the books into premium series and films across languages and platforms, expanding its slate with globally recognised stories. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program 'These stories span political drama, espionage, media power struggles, and sweeping family sagas. They're vast in scope and rich in character — exactly the kind of storytelling that translates powerfully to screen,' said Sameer Nair, Managing Director of Applause Entertainment. 'This is a milestone moment for us. We've worked with Indian books and formats; now we're stepping into the world of global fiction. Jeffrey Archer's novels are built for screen — compelling, fast-paced, and character-driven.' The deal brings together one of the world's most widely read authors with a studio known for adapting books, formats, and real events into scripted content. Applause has previously worked on series such as Scam 1992, Criminal Justice, and Tanaav. 'It's an absolute pleasure to collaborate with Sameer Nair and the team at Applause Entertainment. Their passion for storytelling, their body of work, and their global outlook make them the perfect partners to bring my books to screen,' said Archer. 'I've always had a deep fondness for India, a nation that has embraced my stories like its own, and as an ardent cricket lover, it's a country I feel incredibly connected to. I'm thrilled to see my characters and stories take on a new life — across India and far beyond.' Live Events
Spectator
16-07-2025
- Spectator
Why you should never trust a travel writer
After one of Jeffrey Archer's minor tangles with the absolute truth, his friend the late Barry Humphries remarked: 'We all invent ourselves to some degree. It's just that Jeffrey has taken it a little further than most.' The remark came to mind last week as the media storm over the veracity (or otherwise) of the Winns' account in The Salt Path reached its peak. As Dame Edna might have said, all travel writing is invented to some degree. It's just that Raynor and Moth may have taken it a little further than most. 'In Patagonia?' Bruce Chatwin's lodger is said to have remarked of the eponymous book. 'I doubt Bruce even went downstairs.' That's unfair. Chatwin undoubtedly visited Patagonia. But accounts from others in the region itself do cast doubt on some of his reported encounters there. And I read The Songlines about his Australian travels in Aboriginal lands with increasing scepticism. I have something here to declare. Of all my books the best-selling has been the first I ever wrote, Inca-Kola, about my travels in Peru and Bolivia. I'm proud of it, still in print after more than 30 years. But the book is the story of a single journey through the Andes. In fact my story was constructed from three distinct journeys. Everything I describe happened, even if I sometimes exaggerate a bit; but events didn't always happen in the order in which they happen in the book. And even where no violence is done to the narrative thread, no report can be divorced from the character, prejudices and powers of memory of the reporter. The world he describes is seen through the filter of his own attitudes, and by leaving out (which we must all do) we subtly alter the shape of what we leave in. This column is not meant as an apologia for the Winns. I'm in no position to judge the truths or untruths of their story. What I do question is the existence in the genre of travel writing or journalism of any clear line between fact and fiction: any line which, once crossed, makes the author a liar. I'd go as far as to suggest that a measure of shapeshifting, of filtering in and filtering out, though built upon the real men, women and places the writer has encountered, can create a story that is in part a work of the author's imagination. Some of the worst travel writing has been produced by a traveller's attempt to keep a literal diary and offer a blow-by-blow report of everything that happened. Wilfred Thesiger deserves his place in the travel-writers' hall of fame, but he's a dreadful writer. It's the things he did and the places he saw that elevate his journals; but he has written them up in flat, emotionless schoolboy prose that only fails to kill the story because the subject matter is so extraordinary. The late Dervla Murphy did, on the whole, offer a day-to-day account of real travel experiences, but this sometimes deadens the writing. Her diary-making can struggle to bring to life scenes which in (say) Graham Greene's or D.H. Lawrence's hands would burn brightly in the reader's imagination. Her derring-do, her pluck, her own remarkable personality, are enough to redeem her prose style but never quite to lift it into the category we'd reserve for (for instance) Patrick Leigh Fermor or Eric Newby. The former's Mani: Travels in the Southern Peloponnese has a luminous quality, but Leigh Fermor took his wife, and I've often wondered how Mrs Leigh Fermor's account (had she offered us one) would have read. Newby's short walk in the Hindu Kush made for a deservedly classic report but (in my experience) humour and truth make uneasy bedfellows, and I wouldn't read Newby for a fair and insightful look at the peoples of Afghanistan. Rory Stewart makes a better fist of trying to understand, but he isn't so funny. I like Paul Theroux's writing, but Theroux's Patagonia in The Old Patagonian Express is hardly recognisable to this columnist, who has spent blithe weeks among kind and courteous people in the region, and whose memories are dominated not by skirmish and difficulty, but by the most magnificent landscapes. Like humour, disgust makes for lively writing, but may skew reality. Were we to subject (say) Michael Palin's or David Attenborough's TV documentaries about our planet to the critical scrutiny that the Winns' account of the Salt Path has met, we would encounter no personal dishonesty: but a look behind the scenes at how such documentaries are made would blow to pieces any idea that the journeys these presenters have made will have felt anything like the narrative we see on the screen. Palin does not just happen upon every encounter filmed with the locals in remote places: camera crews, advance parties, editors' ideas are often necessary to set up scenes that on the screen appear impromptu. And I remember Sir David telling me that the sound of migrating reindeers' hooves in the snow is produced using custard powder and a pestle and mortar. None of us would wish Attenborough to bury himself in the snows of Lapland, but be clear, he isn't always there. I recall (in the last century) filming, for one of my Weekend World programmes, near a railway sidings north of King's Cross. We had no time to travel to Liverpool for a Merseyside sequence for which this footage was presented as the backdrop, so King's Cross had to do. Between truth, truthiness and downright falsehood in travel journalism there's a sliding scale. At one end lies the dullness of a mere schoolboy diary. At the other the alleged behaviour of Mr and Mrs Winn. Perhaps we should thank Raynor and Moth. First the nation was immensely moved, as we love to be moved, by the book, then the film. Then the nation revelled, as we love to revel, in the pulling down of what we had built up. The couple have delighted us twice. Can we ask more?
