Fry, the erudite English actor/writer/director, said he had first thought of making a film about Srinivasa Aiyangar Ramanujan while a student at Cambridge, the same university where Ramanujan received recognition for his brilliance.

“The first time I heard the extraordinary story of Ramanujan, I tucked it away in my mind,” Fry told The Associated Press in an interview in Bombay where he is attending an international entertainment industry conference.

“I thought it was the perfect story for a film, but the thought slipped away,” he said.

Now he has begun pursuing the project and managed to meet with Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to discuss the film. Kalam, a former missile scientist who was part of the team that planned India’s 1998 nuclear tests, often lectures on Ramanujan.

“It was a great meeting. Dr Kalam is from the same region that Ramanujan was born in,” said Fry. “He strongly believes there is a place for Ramanujan and the body of his work in today’s world.”

Ramanujan rose from an impoverished home in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu to achieve international acclaim.

His break came when British mathematician G.H. Hardy recognized his genius and arranged for him to come to England in 1914, the beginning an extraordinary collaboration between the two.

Fry said he is confident the story will interest a Western audience.

“It’s not just a story of a mathematician. It’s about his journey. It’s about him in Britain at the time of the First World War,” he said. “It’s simply the nature of these remarkably different men that I think a Western audience will love.”

Indian director Dev Benegal, who also wanted to make a film on Ramanujan, will co-write and direct the movie with Fry. Filming is likely to begin next year.

Benegal is an independent Indian filmmaker who has produced more than 60 short features.

Fry said he was looking at casting Bollywood actors or artists from India’s strong independent movie industry in the film.

While he didn’t meet up with any Bollywood stars in Bombay, Fry said he planned to watch Indian movies over the next few months to spot talents he could use.

Fry, whose current movie “V for Vendetta,” has just been released, made his directing debut two years ago with “Bright Young Things.”

Fry said he was tempted to play Hardy in the movie, but had not yet made a decision.