Stardust: Vikramaditya Motwane's web series inspired by the lives of Devika Rani, Himanshu Rai, Ashok Kumar

Vikramaditya Motwane's upcoming OTT series, titled Stardust, harkens back to the 1940s, charting the history, rivalries, and changing work ethic of the Hindi cinema business through the decades. The series is led by Bengali star Prosenjit, with Aditi Rao Hydari, Aparshakti Khurana, and Wamiqa Gabbi. While the Amazon Prime Video web series is known to be based on true events, it has now been revealed that the first season pulls a few elements from Devika Rani's, her producer-husband Himanshu Rai's, and actor Ashok Kumar's lives.

According to a source close to the production, the first season would be set in the 1940s, when Hindi cinema was thriving under the studio system. The source told Mid-Day that while the show is based on true events, it is a fictionalised version of them. 

Prosenjit and Aditi's roles are claimed to be influenced by Himanshu Rai and Devika Rani, respectively, while Aparshakti's is said to be modelled after Ashok Kumar. Prosenjit's persona is portrayed as an Indian movie pioneer. According to the source, the series digs into how the Hindi cinema industry's first studio was created in the 1930s by a celebrity couple who ended up turning a Kolkata youngster into a superstar. 

Bombay Talkies was founded by Rai and Rani in 1934. The company went on to create a number of films, as well as acting debuts for Dilip Kumar, Leela Chitnis, and Madhubala.

Last March, Motwane began filming his labour of love, but due to the second wave of the pandemic, the project had to be halted. The project was finally completed in February after the team commenced work late last year. 

The insider told the tabloid that the nine episodes were shot in Mumbai over the past three months on a start-to-finish schedule. The next seasons will focus on the lives and times of the stars of the decades to come.