I didn’t make any headway on who would be the female lead to play Esah-Zhurah, but the guy who popped into my head to play Reza (the hero of the story) was Hrithik Roshan, one of Bollywood’s shining stars.

Why would I think of someone like Hrithik over the bevy of traditional American stars, you ask? Well, in the book, Reza isn’t a character cast from the stereotypical well-to-do American ‘burb. He was born on New Constantinople, a planet whose population – as the name suggests – was largely descended from the Mediterranean and trans-Asian regions.

While Hrithik Roshan isn’t exactly from the Med (he was born in Mumbai, India), he just has the look about him that I’d imagined for Reza long before Hrithik took to the screen. He’d also win the popular vote for women everywhere! On top of that, in his latest movie, Jodhaa Akbar, he plays a Mughal emperor and in the promo shots is dressed up in armor (although it’s not midnight black and emblazoned with the rune of the Desh-Ka like Reza’s – but I guess I can’t have everything).

I’m telling you, it was just meant to be! I’m expecting Hrithik’s agent to call any time now…

And hey, if you’d like to see for yourself if he wouldn’t be great for this role, check out the first chapters of In Her Name! And if you’d like to buy it, a list of US and overseas retailers (including India!) is available on the main page for the book. Enjoy!

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