Jim Broadbent stars in Ritesh Batra's adaptation of Booker Prize winner, The Sense of an Ending

Having basked in the success of The Lunchbox, which broke records with its overseas box office collections, director Ritesh Batra is now working on a new project. Batra will direct the BBC adaptation of Julian Barnes’s The Sense of an Ending, which won the Man Booker Prize in 2011. The slim novel about memory, ageing and secrets shuttles between the 1960s and the present. Its narrator is Tony Webster, who finds himself forced to confront the past when a school friend dies and leaves him a diary. Jim Broadbent has been confirmed to play Tony’s role in the film. Broadbent’s twinkling eyes and kindly face is a familiar one, thanks to his roles in beloved films like Bridget Jones’ Diary and the Harry Potter series. He’s one of the most respected names in the world of British acting. He is currently working on a TV mini series based on Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. BBC Films’ Christine Langan said, “We’re over the moon to have the wonderful Jim Broadbent take center stage in this exciting contemporary story.” [caption id=“attachment_2239822” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Jim Broadbent. Image from Reuters.[/caption] According to this Hollywood Reporter exclusive, American distribution company FilmNation has acquired worldwide rights to the film while BBC UK will finance the film adaptation of The Sense of an Ending. It will be the first time Batra will be working on someone else’s script. Playwright Nick Payne aFilmNation will  also introduce the film to buyers in Cannes this year. British playwright Nick Payne (who made his Broadway debut with Constellations, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Ruth Wilson) has written the screenplay. There’s been a lot of curiosity to know what Batra would go on to do after The Lunchbox, which proved to be a surprise hit when it was released in India. Starring Irrfan and Nimrat Kaur, the film was a charming and delicate love story set in Mumbai. The Lunchbox was at the centre of a lot of passionate debate when the film wasn’t selected as the Indian entry for the Oscars even though it had the backing of Sony Pictures and had been very well-received in foreign film festivals. Usually, Indian directors are considered for foreign projects that have a South Asian angle in the plot. Not in the case of The Sense of an Ending. Barnes’s novel is as English (and white) as it gets, with memories of “sixth form” and vintage Britain. For Batra to be chosen to direct a project as thoroughly British project like The Sense of an Ending is quite a coup, especially since Batra is just one film old. It just goes to show how much of an impact The Lunchbox made internationally.