Stylish Bollywood director Sanjay Leela Bhansali has wowed French audiences with his latest effort-directing a French opera by the Name of Padmavati written 90 years ago by Alberto Roussil.

He thrilled the French for the first time in 2002 when he took Devdas to the Cannes film festival. And on Friday night Sanjay Leela Bhansali repeated his performance at the prestigious Theatre du Chatelet when his adaptation of Padmavati, a 1923 opera-ballet, received a standing ovation of 15 minutes.

‘It was the theatrical impact of Black and the quality and beauty of the choreography of Devdas that I decided to mix the two,” said Jean-Luc Choplin, Director, Theatre du Chatelet.

“When I saw Devdas I said this is absolutely opera in fact its opera ballet and I think Padmavati could have been written for Bhansali,” said Lawrence Foster, Opera Music Director, Padmavati.

With Padmavati, Sanjay Leela Bhansali can put back the debacle of Saawariya behind him. “The audience responded to the drama, the pathos, the music and the tragedy. It was truly an uplifting experience,” recounts Bhansali.
Claiming that now he’s “hooked on to doing operas”, Sanjay Leela Bhansali said its timing, after the critical massacre of his last release, Saawariya, couldn’t have been better. “It takes a lot of courage and strength to do something so unexplored just two months after your last artistic work has been ripped apart,” he said. “Today, I feel reassured and slightly vindicated.”

In typical Bhansali style, the opera was filled with colours, elephants, women in colorful garments and high emotions. Bhansali’s style is backed by a truly Indian team with costumes by Rajesh Pratap Singh, choreography by Tanusree Shankar, lighting by Somak Mukherjee and sets by Omung Kumar Bhandula

The opera is set to run till March 24th.