Bombay

Award-winning Indian screenwriter Sooni Taraporevala has been tapped to write “Street Dreams,” a biopic based on the remarkable true story of Vicky Roy, a former street child who rose to international acclaim as a photographer.

Taraporevala, whose credits include Mira Nair‘s “Salaam Bombay,” Venice best screenplay winner “Mississippi Masala,” “The Namesake,” Netflix’s “Yeh Ballet” and Prime Video’s “Waack Girls,” will pen the script for Nirvana Films founder Mauktik Kulkarni, who is producing the project. Indian-American filmmaker Ben Rekhi (“The Reunited States”) is attached as consulting producer.

Roy’s story begins in poverty-stricken rural East India, where desperation drove him to theft and ultimately to flee his home village. He found himself among Delhi’s street children, surviving by collecting rags on train platforms before the Salaam Baalak Trust — a rehabilitation organization established following the success of the Oscar-nominated “Salaam Bombay” — stepped in to change his trajectory. The intervention launched an ascent that would see Roy photograph the 9/11 Memorial construction and secure an MIT Media Labs fellowship. He currently oversees photojournalism initiatives for India’s nationwide Everyone Is Good at Something program, dedicated to empowering individuals with disabilities.

“This is truly a full-circle moment for me. ‘Salaam Bombay’ was made in 1987, the year Vicky Roy was born. I was the writer and still photographer on the film, which launched my careers in both fields. I had no idea then that the film would be so successful and would birth Salaam Baalak Trust that would help so many street children like Vicky find purpose and meaning in life,” Taraporevala said. “As a photographer myself I have followed Vicky’s incredible journey and seen his work since 2009. Now, after the film I initially wrote might have changed his life, to have the opportunity to write a film about his life is quite surreal and wonderful.”

Producer Kulkarni, who transitioned from neuroscience to filmmaking, brings experience from his previous work on travel documentary “Riding on a Sunbeam” and maintains an active Los Angeles-based development slate.

“India is known as a land of myths and fantasies. When I first heard about Vicky’s unbelievable story, I was inclined to believe that it was a bit of both. It has been inspiring to get to know him since then and I couldn’t be more thrilled to bring his story to the screen. Given Sooni’s mastery at crafting India-centric narratives for global audiences and her brilliant work as a photographer, she is the ideal writer to bring this script to life,” Kulkarni said.

The Salaam Baalak Trust’s founder Sanjoy Roy is supporting the film’s development, viewing it as an extension of the organization’s three-decade mission to secure basic rights for India’s street children. The timing follows another success story from the Trust’s network — last year’s Oscar-nominated short “Anuja” featured one of their alumni in a starring role.

“We began in 1988 with the singular mission of ensuring street children in India have access to their basic rights. With the help of our patrons, we are glad that we have gone beyond that mission and spawned thousands of success stories. And Vicky is no exception to it,” Sanjoy Roy said. “Coming on the heels of last year’s Oscar-nominated short film ‘Anuja,’ in which another stellar fellow of our Trust played a leading role, I am hoping ‘Street Dreams’ inspires audiences to believe that it is not where you come from, but rather what you do with your life that matters.”