MUMBAI: Ismail Darbar, who is remembered for his lilting tunes in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, is set to tread on a ground that he has never done before.

After eight years, Darbar returns to Bollywood in a new avatar - that of a director. He has plans to create his own version of the timeless love story of Romeo and Juliet.

Said Darbar in a lighter vein, “Sanjay (Bhansali) told me that in the twelve years of our professional relationship, he has learnt everything he knows about music from me. And I told him that if he could learn music from me, I can, of course, learn to direct from him. The inspiration was always there. It is now that I have decided to take the plunge.”

The film, titled Romeo Juliet, is scheduled to go on floors in a couple of months. It will be shot in Kashmir and Turkey.

Elaborating on the project, Darbar says that the film would be a musical. "I have only been working on the music of the film for the past two years," he said.

Darbar has almost finalised the cast and is keen to rope in Amitabh Bachchan, who he wants to play as a Pathan.