CANNES, France (CNN) -- Editor's note: Watch The Screening Room Cannes special on CNN at the following dates and times: Wednesday 27 May: 0730, 1730, Saturday 30 May: 0730, 1800, Sunday 31 May: 0430, 1730, Monday 31 May: 0300 (All times GMT)



In the most high-profile amalgamation of Indian and western talent yet, Academy Award-winning actor Ben Kingsley stars with Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan in a drama about a pair of maths geniuses.



Ben Kingsely who stars in "Teen Patti" is the first Academy Award-winner ever to take a role in a Bollywood movie.



Bollywood-produced "Teen Patti" ("Card Game") also marks Kingsley's first return to Indian filmmaking since playing the title role in "Gandhi," the critically-acclaimed biopic of the Indian leader that propelled him to fame in 1982.



He is the first Oscar-winning Hollywood actor ever to star in a Bollywood movie, and Kingsley believes that the future of filmmaking could lie in combining the twin talents of the world's biggest film industries.



"I think the two talents put together could be extraordinary," Kingsley told CNN in Cannes where he was promoting "Teen Patti."



The 65 year-old English actor maintains that western cinema is suffering from a lack of originality and "heart," with many films just ending up as a "copy of a copy of a copy."



He thinks that the Indian approach to filmmaking can give western productions the infusion of originality they need -- and that filmmakers in India can benefit from "the technology, and the casting opportunities, the directorial opportunities of the west."



"Teen Patti" is set in India and the UK, where Kingsley shot all of his scenes, and uses English and Hindi dialogue. The drama, which cost a mere $7 million to make, will have its world premiere in Mumbai in August.  Watch CNN The Screening Room producer Neil Curry search for Ben Kingsely in Cannes »



It tells the story of a university professor, played by Bachchan, who schools five of his most able students in the finer points of high-stakes gambling. The film's plot is reported to be similar to "21," the 2008 Kevin Spacey drama, based on the story of the MIT Blackjack Team.



Indian production company Serendipity Films, which was launched in 2003 by Ambika Hinduja, a member of one of India's richest families, is behind the picture.



One of the company's central projects is cultural-fusion projects, like this one. The company is aiming to enter the big league by investing $50 million over the next three years in projects which bring together Indian and western talent. Do you think that Bollywood can make movies for a western audience? Tell us below in the SoundOff box



Kingsley says he has wanted to be associated with mainstream Indian film ever since he made "Gandhi" -- an Indo-British production and so not "entirely an Indian film"-- with director Richard Attenborough in India.



The actor who is acclaimed for performances in "Sexy Beast" (2000) and "Schindler's List" (1993) says he wanted to know what it would be like to work with an Indian director -- Leena Yadav, "who was amazing" -- and a huge Indian star like Bachchan.



"I was very curious about him and he was very curious about me," says Kingsley of working with 66 year-old Bachchan, or "Big B" as India's most prominent Bollywood star is affectionately known to audiences.



Bachchan's deep voice and brooding persona changed the face of Hindi cinema in the 1970s. Up until then Bollywood screens had been populated by wisecracking loverboys -- the trademark Indian hero in the 1960s. Today, he is best-known for hosting the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire" ("Kaun Banega Crorepati").



Kingsley says that while on set, he and Bachchan "circled each other like hunters."



Despite his respect for the Godfather of Bollywood,
who is amitabh bachman? How many times has an oscar winner starred in a bollywood film? Is this high profile? Who does Ben Kingsley star with? What is Kingsley's first return to Indian filmaking after Gandhi?
Bollywood superstar the first In the most high-profile Amitabh Bachchan "Teen Patti" ("Card Game")
question: who is amitabh bachman?, answer: Bollywood superstar | question: How many times has an oscar winner starred in a bollywood film?, answer: the first | question: Is this high profile?, answer: In the most high-profile | question: Who does Ben Kingsley star with?, answer: Amitabh Bachchan | question: What is Kingsley's first return to Indian filmaking after Gandhi?, answer: "Teen Patti" ("Card Game")