Abundantia Entertainment to develop a series on Apeksha Rao's YA novel Along Came a Spyder

Abundantia Entertainment is set to make a multi-season series based on the best-selling book Along Came a Spyder, the production banner announced Thursday.

The banner, known for backing movies such as Airlift, Shakuntala Devi and web series Breathe, has acquired the rights for author Apeksha Rao's novel, which was published in September 2020.

Described as a young-adult thriller, the story is about 17-year-old Samira who is smart, sassy, and whose only dream in life is to follow in her family's footsteps and become a spy.

Leading missions, running agents, evading exploding napalms - she wants to do it all while dealing with the coming-of-age pangs on her budding youth. When she accidentally discovers there exists a sisterhood of teen spies called ''The Spyders'', Samira will do anything to get in.

The project falls under Abundantia Entertainment's "Filters" segment, which was recently launched to explore stories from the young-adult (YA) genre.

"YA is a clear and distinct priority for Abundantia Entertainment. And we want to tap into every possibility to create insightful and engaging stories for the Indian YA segment.

"Apeksha's brilliant and evocative book, Along Came A Spyder, is a step in that direction. I'm excited about the possibility of building an Indian home-grown YA franchise for this under-served segment," Vikram Malhotra, founder and CEO of Abundantia Entertainment, said in a statement.

Rao said she is looking forward to see her characters come alive through the series.

"I am truly excited that Abundantia Entertainment along with The Story Ink will be seeing this journey through. Along Came a Spyder is a fast-paced, thrilling adventure revolving around a teenager and her grit and determination to pursue her dream of becoming a spy. I'm positive that the youth will thoroughly enjoy this adaptation," the author added.

"Abundantia was our first choice to partner with for Apeksha's book and we are delighted that our first collaboration with them focusses on building a strong YA franchise based on Along Came a Spyder," said Sidharth Jain, founder and producer of India's leading book to screen company - The Story Ink.