Sanjay Leela Bhansali, an Indian filmmaker known for his vast, operatic style of filmmaking, will now focus on the small screen with the Netflix series “Heeramandi.”

The series takes place in pre-independence, undivided India, in the Lahore neighborhood of Heeramandi, which is now part of Pakistan.

“It is a huge saga about the courtesans of Lahore, it is something I was living with for 14 years,” Bhansali tells Variety. “It’s very vast and ambitious.”

Through three generations of courtesans, the series will examine themes of love, betrayal, succession, and politics in Heeramandi’s kothas or bordellos.

“It’s a very difficult one, I like to take a little time and the scale is big,” says Bhansali. “I live with a subject for a long time, then I build and build and I keep thinking of it… So it’s a lot of time I give to a particular idea, but it’s great fun. That’s how it finally emerges. So now I think I’m ready to make ‘Heeramandi.’”

2021 marks Bhansali’s 25th year as a filmmaker. He debuted in 1996 with “Khamoshi: The Musical” and has also directed “Padmaavat,” “Devdas,” “Black,” “Bajirao Mastani,” “Guzaarish” and “Ram Leela.”

In 2002, “Devdas” premiered at Cannes and was nominated for a BAFTA. The film “Gangubai Kathiawadi,” directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, is set to be released soon.

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