Farhan Akhtar ‘honoured and grateful’ to play Ravi Shankar in Sam Mendes’ Beatles film series

NEW DELHI: Actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar on Thursday said he is “honoured and grateful” to be part of the legacy of The Beatles and sitar maestro Ravi Shankar as he prepares to portray the Indian music icon in filmmaker Sam Mendes’ upcoming four-part cinematic event on the legendary British band.

Sony Pictures had last week announced that Akhtar will star as Ravi Shankar in The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event, directed by Mendes, the Oscar-winning filmmaker known for American Beauty, 1917, and the James Bond hits Skyfall and Spectre.The ambitious project will chronicle the story of the iconic band through four separate films, each told from the perspective of one of its members.

In a post on Instagram, Akhtar thanked Mendes and described the opportunity as “the stuff dreams are made of”.

“Honoured and grateful to be part of the ever-expanding legacy of @thebeatles and of Pandit Ravi Shankar ji.

“Their creative genius is a rite of passage for generation after generation of listeners… Thank you, Sam Mendes… I have been an ardent admirer of all your work, and to be directed by you in this film is the stuff dreams are made of,Formed in 1960 by Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, and Starr, The Beatles became one of the most influential bands in music history with songs such as “Hey Jude”, “I Want to Hold Your Hand”, “Yesterday”, and “Penny Lane”, before breaking up in 1970.

Ravi Shankar’s music had a profound influence on the band, particularly Harrison, who learned the sitar from the Indian maestro.

The Beatles incorporated Indian instruments into several of their songs, including “Norwegian Wood”, “Within You Without You”, and “Love You To”.Shankar and Harrison remained close friends and collaborated at the Concert for Bangladesh in August 1971.

Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, and the families of the late John Lennon and George Harrison have granted Mendes full life story and music rights for the films, which are slated for release in cinemas in April 2028.