The Empire director on GOT comparisons: ‘They have dragons and zombies. How can people compare?’

The Empire director Mitakshara Kumar has addressed comparisons being made between the new series and HBO’s hit show Game of Thrones. The Empire was released on Disney+ Hotstar earlier last week and many have noticed how similar the colouring, action and aesthetics of the two shows seem to be.

Mitakshara, in an interview, has said that there is a big difference between the budgets allotted to the two shows. She also said that the subject is also entirely different.

Speaking to The Indian Express, she said, “They have dragons and zombies, how can people compare?” She added, “You want to compare our show to Game of Thrones? Give us the budget of Game of Thrones. That show is made on a huge scale. I think our entire series could be made in the budget they use for just 1-2 episodes. If despite having a fraction of the budget, we are still being compared to Game of Thrones, I think somewhere we have done something right.”

While Game of Thrones is a fictional series based on George RR Martin’s bestselling novels from A Song of Ice and Fire saga, The Empire is based on Alex Rutherford’s series of books, Empire of the Moghul. It traces the life of Mughal emperor Babur and his journey from a child king to the ruler of the Mughal Empire in India. Kunal Kapoor plays Babur with Shabana Azmi, Dino Morea and others in supporting roles.

Also read: The Empire review: Horrendous Hotstar show rips off Game of Thrones, apes Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Kunal, too, had addressed the comparisons between the shows in an interview to Bollywood Bubble. “I think these are unnecessary comparisons. Comparisons will be made and it is tragic that it is Game Of Thrones because it is a fantastic show. Whenever you do a period drama like that it will be compared to something. Some will say it is like Padmaavat, Bajirao or Game Of Thrones, but it is a different story, it’s a different world, different characters different people. If people are comparing the scale (to GOT) then great, it’s wonderful, but I don’t think there is any other commonality between that show and this show,” he said.