Before the Indian freedom struggle became synonymous with the names of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose, there were revolutionaries who chose a very different path to fight British rule.
Nikkhil Advani's upcoming series The Revolutionaries turns the spotlight on some of these lesser known but fiercely determined figures, including Rash Behari Bose, Bagha Jatin, Sachindranath Sanyal and Pratibha Lahiri.
Written and directed by Advani, the Prime Video series explores the revolutionary movement and the young men and women who risked their lives in the fight for India's independence.
The cast includes Bhuvan Bam as Rash Behari Bose, Rohit Saraf as Sachindranath Sanyal, Pratibha Ranta as Pratibha Lahiri and Gurfateh Pirzada as Bagha Jatin.
But the casting of these historical figures also raises an obvious question - particularly because several of them have deep roots in Bengal. Why, then, did Advani not cast more Bengali actors in these roles?
When asked exactly that during a conversation with NDTV, Advani had a candid response: "I don't know ya! It's a great question."
Rohit Saraf, who plays Sachindranath Sanyal, then pointed out, "We do have Paoli ma'am," referring to Bengali actor Paoli Dam, who is part of the series.
Advani then explained the larger thought process behind his casting choices. For the filmmaker, The Revolutionaries was an opportunity to take the stories of these freedom fighters to a much wider audience, and he did not want to compromise on that ambition.
"No, but why not Raj Behari Bose, Bagha Jatin. I mean Sachindra Nath Sanyal and Pratibha Lahiri can still can be whatever but Bose..." he said.
"You know I wanted a lot of people to watch The Revolutionaries. We made some wonderful shows like Rocket Boys, we made Freedom at Midnight and incredible actors and incredible love we have got from people who have watched it."
Advani said the scale of his latest project also played an important role in his decisions.
"But it was Amazon Prime that was giving me a chance with this kind of show, with this kind of scale, with this kind of energy, so I just felt that I don't want to leave any stone unturned by not using the best of the youth that is out there," he said.
"For me that was very important."
One of the casting choices that has attracted particular attention is Bhuvan Bam playing Rash Behari Bose. Bam, who rose to fame through his digital content, is making a dramatic turn as the revolutionary leader in the period series.
Advani acknowledged that the casting could lead to questions from viewers who may have imagined someone else in the role.
"So when people turned around and said how is Bhuvan playing Rajbihari Bose but for me it was, I wanted to reach to the largest people to show them this incredible story," the filmmaker said.
Advani also appeared to anticipate the criticism that could come his way over not casting more Bengali actors in the series.
"So it's just that I mean I am going to get a lot of flack why did I not..." he said, before adding a joke about his own Bengali connection.
"My in-laws are Bengali, I am a jamai so I'll be able to getaway with it," Advani said with a laugh.
The Revolutionaries, written and directed by Nikkhil Advani, is set to premiere on Prime Video on September 11. The series follows the four revolutionaries as they challenge British rule, exploring their friendship, sacrifice, rebellion and the personal costs of their fight for independence.
