“The series adaptation relies heavily on the original Urdu version of the novel, unlike the film adaptations that had taken creative liberties to fit the story into a film narrative,” Hamid Hussain, one of the producers, told the American magazine.

Muhammad Yaqoob is another producer. The Urdu language series is being packaged and adapted by Abu Dhabi-based South Asian celebrity management agency Action Consultancy.

The firm manages leading stars from South Asia, including Humayun Saeed, who featured in The Crown and Ahad Raza Mir, who was in Resident Evil. The agency has recently expanded its portfolio and ventured into financing international content and packaging films and series.

The novel, written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa in 1899, is known for its portrayal of the culture and society of the 19th century Indian subcontinent. The story revolves around a courtesan and poet.

The novel has had several film adaptations on both sides of the border. Hasan Tariq directed Umrao Jaan Ada (1972), with Rani in the title role, in Pakistan. In India, Muzaffar Ali’s Umrao Jaan (1981) starred Rekha, while JP Dutta’s 2006 adaptation Umrao Jaan starred Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The novel also inspired two 1958 Indian films – SM Yusuf’s Mehndi and Nakhshab Jarchavi’s Zindagi Ya Toofan.

A local TV adaptation was aired on Geo TV in 2003 and an Indian TV adaptation played on the Doordarshan Urdu channel in 2014. Indian composers Salim-Sulaiman adapted Ali’s 1981 film as stage musical Umrao Jaan Ada – The Musical in 2019

The show is said to feature a “second strong female lead” from the novel. It is currently in development and is expected to head to a major streamer.

“There is a lot in the novel that has never been shown in an audiovisual project,” Hussain said. Sajal is also one of the leads in Shekhar Kapur’s What’s Love Got to Do with It?.