The project was the idea of top Indian director Vishal Bhardwaj, who three years ago packed in cinemas with his Hindi version of "Macbeth" named Maqbool.

"Macbeth was a big success not just in India but in international festivals, so I thought it would be a good idea to do another Shakespeare," Bhardwaj told during an interview in Cannes.

"Othello is a universal tale, dealing with the basic human traits of revenge and jealousy and I thought it would translate well into a film."

Bhardwaj spent some two months writing the Hindi script for his film which he has called "Omkara" after the main character, and which by Bollywood standards has a big budget of some five million US dollars.

In this version of Shakespeare's classic, the Moor of Venice is portrayed as a gangland leader operating in the Indian badlands of Uttar Pradesh.

"Once upon a time in the east, in a world ruled by outlaws, a world that lived by the trigger, there was a single clan that was held together by loyalty," reads the synopsis of "Omkara".

"I think it is much more interesting to see the villains than the saints," said Bhardwaj, explaining why he made the character Omkara, played by Bollywood heart-throb Ajay Devgan, a gang leader.

This is a very modern take on the tale, with the supposed betrayal by the Desdemona character, Dolly, played by stunning actress Kareena Kapoor, overheard via a mobile phone.

And the famous handkerchief, delivered up to Omkara by the scheming Iago or in the Bollywood version, Langda Tyagi played by Saif Ali Khan, has been replaced by a waistband.

Devgan told during a trip to France to promote the film at the Cannes Film Festival, something he rarely does, that he had leapt at the role even though it marked a departure for him from previous parts.

"When the role is good, and the character is one which has so many shades, it's always challenging. It's always challenging when you have a great director, and you are so excited about a script."

Devgan, a veteran of more than 65 films, acknowledged his fame had come at a cost. "But I don't regret it. Everything comes with its own pros and cons. You have to pay a price for everything, that's fair enough."

In Bollywood tradition music and dancing is a key part of "Omkara", helping to tell the story, something which gave Vivek Oberoi, who plays Cassio or Kesu, a tasking time as he had to learn to sing and play the guitar.

Oberoi, the son of the famous actor Suresh Oberoi, who has soared to Bollywood heights since making his debut some four years ago, said he had practised hard and there were a "few too many cracked bathroom tiles" as proof.

"Kesu is a many layered character. On the one hand he idolises Omkara, but he also has a brotherly feeling towards Iago.

"He's a young, educated guy from the university, who is into the student political arena. He's well-spoken, articulate, very well-spoken at times. And then you see the violent side to him, which is the diametric opposite, where he leaps into a fight and rips people apart."

Overseas distribution rights have already been snapped up by Eros, the world's leading distributor of Bollywood films, with over 1,000 titles.

And producer Kumar Mangat said sales of the film had already ensured it had covered its cost, huge by Indian standards, given that the budget for "Maqbool" came in at one million dollars, which it greatly recouped.

"Omkara" will also be the first Bollywood movie to be made available on broadband, following a deal between Eros and Intel, and a new investment in Singapore video-on-demand leader Anytime Ltd.

Eros, which last week announced it was to float on the London Stock Exchange, predicts total annual sales of some 44 million dollars this year, following a turnover during nine months of 2005 of some 32.2 million dollars.

And their success was evident at a glittering party held on the Cannes beach late Saturday, when party-goers including British-Indian "Bend it Like Beckham" director Gurinder Chanda got a sneak preview of the film.

Meanwhile Bhardwaj revealed that although he is taking a break from Shakespeare for a while, he would quite like to do a Hindi "Hamlet" next.