LOS ANGELES: Actor-rapper Riz Ahmed is set to star in and produce drama "Mughal Mowgli".
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Emmy-winning actor will lead the spiritual drama about a British Pakistani rapper who is struck down by an epigenetic illness that threatens to derail his big break as he is about to go on his maiden world tour.
The project marks the feature directorial debut of documentary filmmaker Bassam Tariq, whose "Ghosts of Sugar Land" recently won the non-fiction short film award at Sundance and was acquired by Netflix.
"I'm excited to be finally be working on a feature with my friends at Pulse Films and my co-conspirator Bassam Tariq. We are setting out to do something different, and do it in a bold way," Ahmed said.
The actor will also share writing credits with Tariq.
"Collaborating with Bassam and Riz on 'Mughal Mowgli' goes to the heart of our studio's ethos: to tell human stories that capture moments of culture," co-producer Pulse Films' CEO Benski said.
Production is set to begin this month.
Ahmed was last seen in "Venom" and is currently prepping for BBC drama series "Englistan".