User:Pravinraj/Komagata Maru (film)

Komagata Maru (कोमगता मरू) or Exclusion, is an upcoming Indo-Canadian epic historical drama film. The film stars Akshay Kumar and Shriya Saran in the lead roles with Vinay Virmani  as an ensemble cast in the film. The movie will be direct by Deepa Mehta and will produce by Hamilton-Mehta Productions in association with Akshay Kumar's home production, Hari Om Entertainment. The film's score and soundtrack will compose by A. R. Rahman. Komagata Maru is based on a true story surrounding the voyage of a Japanese ship by the name 'Komagata Maru' hired by people from Punjab led by Gurdit Singh from Hong Kong to Vancouver in 1914 with 376 passengers on board seeking a new life in the promised land. The film also depicts the martyrdom of Mewa Singh.

Synopsis
In 1914, the steamship Komagata Maru sailed from Hong Kong to Vancouver, with 354 passengers on board. Their attempts to immigrate to Canada were unsuccessful and the ship returned to India where some of the passengers died following an encounter with the police.

Cast

 * Akshay Kumar as Gurdit Singh. Gurdit Singh, an astute businessman, who at 58 rents a ship, the Komagata Maru, and ''helps sail 375 people, most of them Gadar revolutionaries wanted by the British. Later, when the ship is returned to India and the people aboard are arrested or killed, he goes underground. Only when Mahatma Gandhi asks him to give up does he surrender to the British.


 * Shriya Saran as one of the female passenger in Komagata Maru ship


 * Vinay Virmani as Mewa Singh. Mewa Singh, a Vancouver based immigrant at that time, made headlines by shooting dead police officer William Charles Hopkins who was sent by the British from India to investigate Indian revolutionaries in Canada. Mewa Singh was hanged on January 11, 1915 in Vancouver. Though Singh was a murderer, the day is celebrated as Mewa Singh Martyrdom Day.

Rumored to be part of cast :


 * John Abraham. According to Mehta, Abraham will play a Bhagat Singh-like character who will hunt the main culprit, a British officer.


 * Terence Stamp as Mr. Bird. Mr. Bird a lawyer, who was very sympathetic to the people aboard. He took up their case and put himself in harm's way as he fought for them, telling the government that it was inhuman the way the asylum-seekers were treated.


 * Padma Lakshmi


 * Manisha Koirala


 * Mahima Chaudhry


 * Seema Biswas as Daljit Kaur. Daljit is not actually on the boat but she galvanises the tiny Indian community in Vancouver and raises money to help fight the cause of the would-be immigrants.


 * Nandita Das as Raghunath Singh's wife. Her husband, who is a doctor on the ship, spies on his fellow Indians. He is allowed to get off the ship in Vancouver because of his service to the Canadians but she stays aboard.

Production
After the success of Water, Deepa Mehta planned to do a film which is based on Komagata Maru incident with Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan in the lead role. The film was titled as The Exclusion or Exclusion before retitled it as Komagata Maru since the movie was inspired by the incident. The filming will commence in early of 2013 after Mehta has finished filming for Midnight's Children, another dream project of her, in order to release the former in 2014 to coincide with 100 anniversary of Komagata Maru incident as per suggestion from the Government of Canada, the financier of the film.

Casting
With the initial announcement, the lead cast was revealed. Originally Amitabh Bachchan was chosen for the historical Gurdit Singh role, but dropped has Bachchan didn't have the Canadian citizenship has the film is a government financed picture and requires a local lead as per the Canadian norms. Soon Akshay Kumar who has a permanent resident status of Canada finalist for the lead role. Kumar who earlier played Sikh character in Singh Is Kinng will also be seen in the movie as a Sikh with turban. In addition of that, Kumar will also produce the film with Deepa Mehta and David Hamilton with his home production Hari Om Entertainment. For the female lead, Shriya Saran a South Indian actress was selected. Saran who earlier worked with Mehta in Cooking with Stella where Mehta was co-director says, "I’m on top of the world, as I'm doing Deepa Mehta's epic Komagata Maru. Deepaji is my favourite director and it is a great honour to do a film with her". Actor Vinay Virmani, who worked in casting department in Deepa Mehta's Bollywood/Hollywood will be essay the role of Mewa Singh who assassinated W. C. Hopkinson, who was the principal conspirator against the passengers. Virmani who is a graduate from Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute said that, "It is both incredibly exciting and slightly daunting to be given the challenge of playing a historical figure of such significance to my community. I am looking forward to being a part of this incredible film". Furthermore, actor and actress such as Terence Stamp, John Abraham, Manisha Koirala, Mahima Chaudhry, Seema Biswas and Nandita Das also approached to be part of the cast. Regarding about this, actor John Abraham said, "I'd still be willing to play the other lead because it's as important as Akshay Kumar's role. It's always a pleasure working with Akshay". Besides that, Padma Lakshmi an Indian American cookbook author, actress, and model also rumored to be part of the cast.