/> Why was Shekhar Kapoor in Los Angeles last week? You may well ask.

He was there to finalize plans for a huge Hollywood fantasy-epic that he'll direct for Warner Brothers.

It's the current craze on the book shelves for the fantasia genre entitled Larklight.

Authored by Philip Reeve who's being called another J.K Rowling Larklight was an instant bestseller across the world when it was first published in 2006.

It was only a matter of time before it went on film. What comes as a surprise is that the inimitable Shekhar Kapoor has been chosen to direct the huge-budgeted screen version of Larklight.

Shekhar, no stranger to science-fantasies- –remember the aborted Time Machine with Aamir Khan which he's now going to produce for director Rakeysh Mehra?—is quite kicked by the project.

"I was in LA last week to collaborate with the writer Steve Knight for Larklight. It's something I had signed on three months ago. It's a franchise book and being hailed as the new Harry Potter. Warner Brothers has bought the rights. Steve and I are currently working on the screenplay."

A young bright and serious boy plays the lead. Let's not forget Shekhar discovered Jugal Hansraj for Masoom.

Interestingly Steve Knight conceived and wrote the popular game show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire which later became our Kaun Banega Crorepati. His last screenplay was Eastern Promises.

Says Shekhar, "Steve and I are good friends. We've been working on the script extensively. It's a 200-million dollar project, probably the most expensive film I've made and will ever make."

Shekhar will first complete Larklight in Hollywood before proceeding to do the much-awaited Paani in Mumbai.