"Senna" director Asif Kapadia has signed on to direct "Ali and Nino," which Oscar winner Christopher Hampton is adapting from Kurban Said's pre-World War Two bestselling romance novel.
PeaPie Films founder Kris Thykier will produce, while Leyla Aliyeva will executive produce. IM Global will handle worldwide sales for the film, which is scheduled to start production early next year.
First published in 1937, the epic novel follows the love story between the male descendant of a royal Muslim family and a beautiful, Christian, Georgian princess.
“'Ali and Nino' is such a poignant and timeless novel and I am thrilled to be collaborating with such a talented screenwriter as Christopher Hampton to bring it to life," said Kapadia, whose "Senna" is the highest-grossing UK documentary of all-time.
