Singularity (film)
Encyclopedia
Singularity is an upcoming epic
romance
time travel
adventure film
. Helmed by Roland Joffé
from a story by Ajey Jhankar, the film is a sweeping tale of an impossible love set against the backdrop of the first Anglo-Maratha war
across two time periods and continents and centred around four characters — a British officer in 18th century colonial India
, the Indian woman he falls deeply in love with, an American present-day marine biologist
and his wife.
Singularity is currently in post-production
. The film will be showcased at the 65th annual Cannes International Film Festival
in May 2012.
, 2020. After a dangerous dive
to save his wife Laura trapped while exploring
a colonial British merchant ship
wreckage
, Jay Fennel, a rugged and attractive marine archeologist
lies brain dead in a Boston
hospital.
Fennel's dream-like coma
takes us back in time to Pune
, India
in 1778. The British East India Company
is invading the palaces and a young captain
named James Stewart, who bears a striking resemblance to Fennel, is about to embark on a dangerous mission. Along the way he encounters murder, deceit, betrayal and revenge. He falls deeply in love with a Marathi warrior named Tulaja Naik, an impossible love which he must fight for.
Only the power of a ring can transcend time and save a life.
and co-financed by Ajey Jhankar's Neelmudra Entertainment. Sales outfit Corsan World Sales, a division of Corsan NV, is handling international sales.
Previously known as The Invaders, the epic
drama
is named after a principle
of quantum physics. The film has been in works since the late 1990s and was due originally to feature Hollywood actor Brendan Fraser
and Bollywood
actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
and Vivek Oberoi
.
The Roland Joffé
-directed Anglo-Indian historical romance
is Bipasha Basu
's first English language film. The Bengali
actress was encouraged to take up her international debut by Oscar winning actress Hilary Swank
. Basu first met up with Swank at the New Seven Wonders of the World
Official Declaration ceremony convened in Lisbon
in 2007 and met her again at the 2011 International Indian Film Academy Awards
in Toronto
.
The film kicked off production in Australia
, in the state of Queensland
, on November 8, 2010 through to the third week of December 2010. The production then moved to India
on March 31, 2011 for a further five weeks, roaming the rocky terrain of Chambal
, Orchha
and Gwalior in the state of Madhya Pradesh
. Principal photography
wrap up on April 23, 2011. The production was originally planned for the United Kingdom
instead of Australia
.
Epic film
An epic is a genre of film that emphasizes human drama on a grand scale. Epics are more ambitious in scope than other film genres, and their ambitious nature helps to differentiate them from similar genres such as the period piece or adventure film...
romance
Romance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
time travel
Time travel in fiction
Time travel is a common theme in science fiction and is depicted in a variety of media. It simply means either going forward in time or backward, to experience the future, or the past.-Literature:...
adventure film
Adventure film
Adventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....
. Helmed by Roland Joffé
Roland Joffé
Roland Joffé is an English-French film director who is known for his Oscar nominated movies, The Killing Fields and The Mission. He began his career in television. His early television credits included episodes of Coronation Street and an adaptation of The Stars Look Down for Granada...
from a story by Ajey Jhankar, the film is a sweeping tale of an impossible love set against the backdrop of the first Anglo-Maratha war
First Anglo-Maratha War
The First Anglo-Maratha War was the first of three Anglo-Maratha wars fought between the British East India Company and Maratha Empire in India. The war began with the Treaty of Surat and ended with the Treaty of Salbai.-Background:...
across two time periods and continents and centred around four characters — a British officer in 18th century colonial India
Colonial India
Colonial India refers to areas of the Indian Subcontinent under the control of European colonial powers, through trade and conquest. The first European power to arrive in India was the army of Alexander the Great in 327–326 BC. The satraps he established in the north west of the subcontinent...
, the Indian woman he falls deeply in love with, an American present-day marine biologist
Marine biology
Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather...
and his wife.
Singularity is currently in post-production
Post-production
Post-production is part of filmmaking and the video production process. It occurs in the making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, audio recordings, photography, and digital art...
. The film will be showcased at the 65th annual Cannes International Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
in May 2012.
Premise
Great Barrier ReefGreat Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
, 2020. After a dangerous dive
Wreck diving
Wreck diving is a type of recreational diving where shipwrecks are explored. Although most wreck dive sites are at shipwrecks, there is an increasing trend to scuttle retired ships to create artificial reef sites...
to save his wife Laura trapped while exploring
Underwater archaeology
Underwater archaeology is archaeology practised underwater. As with all other branches of archaeology it evolved from its roots in pre-history and in the classical era to include sites from the historical and industrial eras...
a colonial British merchant ship
Merchant vessel
A merchant vessel is a ship that transports cargo or passengers. The closely related term commercial vessel is defined by the United States Coast Guard as any vessel engaged in commercial trade or that carries passengers for hire...
wreckage
Shipwreck
A shipwreck is what remains of a ship that has wrecked, either sunk or beached. Whatever the cause, a sunken ship or a wrecked ship is a physical example of the event: this explains why the two concepts are often overlapping in English....
, Jay Fennel, a rugged and attractive marine archeologist
Maritime archaeology
Maritime archaeology is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, shore side facilities, port-related structures, cargoes, human remains and submerged...
lies brain dead in a Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
hospital.
Fennel's dream-like coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
takes us back in time to Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in 1778. The British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
is invading the palaces and a young captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
named James Stewart, who bears a striking resemblance to Fennel, is about to embark on a dangerous mission. Along the way he encounters murder, deceit, betrayal and revenge. He falls deeply in love with a Marathi warrior named Tulaja Naik, an impossible love which he must fight for.
Only the power of a ring can transcend time and save a life.
Cast
- Josh HartnettJosh HartnettJoshua Daniel "Josh" Hartnett is an American actor and aspiring producer. He first came to audiences' attention in 1997 as "Michael Fitzgerald" in the television series Cracker. He made his feature film debut in 1998, co-starring with Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later for Miramax...
as 'Jay Fennel', a rugged and attractive marine archeologistMaritime archaeologyMaritime archaeology is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, shore side facilities, port-related structures, cargoes, human remains and submerged...
& as 'James Stewart', a BritishBritish peopleThe British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
officerOfficer (armed forces)An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
in 1780s IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, who reluctantly spearheads British aggression on the mighty MarathaMarathaThe Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
s in order to take over the entire subcontinentIndian subcontinentThe Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
. - Neve CampbellNeve CampbellNeve Adrianne Campbell is a Canadian actress. After beginning her career on stage, and on numerous commercials, she starred on the Canadian television series Catwalk. She then rose to international fame on the Golden Globe-winning 1990s television series Party of Five, playing the role of teenager...
as Laura Fennel, Jay Fennel's wife. - Bipasha BasuBipasha BasuBipasha Basu is an Indian actress who mainly appears in Bollywood films. A former model, she was the winner of the Ford's Godrej Cinthol Supermodel contest in 1996.-Early life:...
as Tulaja Naik, a MarathaMarathaThe Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
warrior whom James Stewart falls desperately in love with. - Abhay DeolAbhay DeolAbhay Deol is an Indian actor from Mumbai, India. He is an Indian film actor and producer whose family has a long history in the Hindi film industry. Deol has appeared in films such as Dev.D and Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!. He is the nephew of Bollywood actor Dharmendra, and the cousin of Sunny Deol and...
as Udaji - Shane BriantShane BriantShane Briant is an actor and novelist. Briant studied Law at Trinity College Dublin but became a professional actor playing the name role in Hamlet at the Eblana theatre...
as The Governor of Bombay - Bille BrownBille BrownBille Brown, AM is an Australian Shakespearean actor and acclaimed writer of plays.Brown was born in Biloela, Queensland and studied drama at the University of Queensland where he received and Honorary Doctorate of Letters...
- Claire van der BoomClaire van der BoomClaire van der Boom is a Logie Award winning Australian film and television actress of Dutch ancestry. Internationally, she is best known for her appearance as Stella in the third episode of the HBO miniseries The Pacific, and her recurring role playing the ex-wife of Det...
- Atul KulkarniAtul KulkarniAtul Kulkarni born 10 September 1965 is an Indian actor who has won two National Awards and has superstar status in Marathi film industry after successful movies like Valu and Natarang....
as Raoji - Milind GunajiMilind GunajiMilind Gunaji is an actor in Marathi and Hindi theater, TV and film and also writer. Most known for his roles in films like Devdas , Godmother , Virasat , Fareb , Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa and Dev , both by Govind Nihalani.He has been the host of travel show, Bhatkanti on Zee Marathi channel about...
as Shiv - Simone KessellSimone KessellSimone Kessell is a New Zealand actress who has starred in several films and television series.-Personal life:Kessell is married to Australian director Gregor Jordan...
as Clara Coldstream - James Mackay as Charles Stewart, captain James Stewart's brother
- Vijay Thombre as Havaldar Desai, captain James Stewart's right hand
- Aegina de Vas as Queen Jamnabai
- Tehmina SunnyTehmina SunnyTehmina Sunny is a British actress and a trained violinist and vocalist.-Career:Sunny was born in Croydon, England to parents Ayesha and Ahmed of Indian descent. She speaks Gujarati and Hindi. She majored in Computing and Business from the University of Leeds in England...
as Sonubai
Production
Singularity is being produced by Paul Breuls' Corsan NV, Dale G. Bradley's Limelight International Media Entertainment, Marion Wei Han's Bliss Media LtdBliss Media Ltd
Bliss Media, Ltd is an international film production and distribution company that provides film financing, production, acquisition, sales and distribution...
and co-financed by Ajey Jhankar's Neelmudra Entertainment. Sales outfit Corsan World Sales, a division of Corsan NV, is handling international sales.
Previously known as The Invaders, the epic
Epic film
An epic is a genre of film that emphasizes human drama on a grand scale. Epics are more ambitious in scope than other film genres, and their ambitious nature helps to differentiate them from similar genres such as the period piece or adventure film...
drama
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
is named after a principle
Singularity
Singularity or Singular points may refer to:-Mathematics:* Mathematical singularity, a point at which a given mathematical object is not defined or not well-behaved, for example infinite or not differentiable-Geometry:...
of quantum physics. The film has been in works since the late 1990s and was due originally to feature Hollywood actor Brendan Fraser
Brendan Fraser
Brendan James Fraser is a Canadian-American film and stage actor. Fraser portrayed Rick O'Connell in the three-part Mummy film series , and is known for his comedic and fantasy film leading roles in major Hollywood films, including Encino Man , George of the Jungle , Dudley Do-Right , Monkeybone ,...
and Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
Aishwarya Rai
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is an Indian film actress. She worked as a model before starting her acting career, and ultimately won the Miss World pageant in 1994...
and Vivek Oberoi
Vivek Oberoi
Vivek Oberoi is an Indian actor. He is the son of Bollywood actor Suresh Oberoi and Yashodhara Oberoi.- Early life :Vivek attended Mayo college in Ajmer. At an actors' workshop in London he was spotted by the director of New York University who took Vivek off to New York, where he completed his...
.
The Roland Joffé
Roland Joffé
Roland Joffé is an English-French film director who is known for his Oscar nominated movies, The Killing Fields and The Mission. He began his career in television. His early television credits included episodes of Coronation Street and an adaptation of The Stars Look Down for Granada...
-directed Anglo-Indian historical romance
Romance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
is Bipasha Basu
Bipasha Basu
Bipasha Basu is an Indian actress who mainly appears in Bollywood films. A former model, she was the winner of the Ford's Godrej Cinthol Supermodel contest in 1996.-Early life:...
's first English language film. The Bengali
Bengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
actress was encouraged to take up her international debut by Oscar winning actress Hilary Swank
Hilary Swank
Hilary Ann Swank is an American actress. Swank's film career began with a small part in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and then a major part in The Next Karate Kid , as Julie Pierce, the first female protégé of sensei Mr. Miyagi...
. Basu first met up with Swank at the New Seven Wonders of the World
New Seven Wonders of the World
New7Wonders of the World was an initiative started in 2001 by the Swiss corporation New7Wonders Foundation to choose Wonders of the World from a selection of 200 existing monuments. A popularity poll was led by Canadian-Swiss Bernard Weber and organized by the New7Wonders Foundation based in...
Official Declaration ceremony convened in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
in 2007 and met her again at the 2011 International Indian Film Academy Awards
International Indian Film Academy Awards
The International Indian Film Academy Awards, also known as the IIFA Awards are presented annually by the International Indian Film Academy to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in Bollywood, the Hindi language film industry. Instituted in 2000, the ceremony is held in...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
.
The film kicked off production in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, in the state of Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, on November 8, 2010 through to the third week of December 2010. The production then moved to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
on March 31, 2011 for a further five weeks, roaming the rocky terrain of Chambal
Chambal Division
Chambal Division is an administrative geographical unit of Madhya Pradesh state of India. Morena is the administrative headquarters of the division. Currently , the division consists of the three districts of Morena, Bhind and Sheopur....
, Orchha
Orchha
Orchha is a town in Tikamgarh district of Madhya Pradesh state, India. The town was established by Maharaja Rudra Pratap Singh in 1501, as the seat of an eponymous former princely state of central India, in the Bundelkhand region. Orchha lies on the Betwa River , 80 km from Tikamgarh &...
and Gwalior in the state of Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
. Principal photography
Principal photography
thumb|300px|Film production on location in [[Newark, New Jersey]].Principal photography is the phase of film production in which the movie is filmed, with actors on set and cameras rolling, as distinct from pre-production and post-production....
wrap up on April 23, 2011. The production was originally planned for the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
instead of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
External Links
- International Sales (Corsan World Sales)
- Production (Bliss Media Ltd)