01 — The World
Triratna — The Three Jewels
The Logline
"It is 1947, but Independence is a lie. The East India Company has rebranded into a mega-corporation — using high-tech surveillance and propaganda to maintain control while fabricating the illusion of freedom."
Setting
A narrow, rain-drenched Galli (lane) in an Indian metropolis. The air is thick with humidity and the hum of neon. Monsoon skies blot out daylight — the only colour comes from cyan neon tubes running vertically up haveli walls and the amber warmth of the Chai Stall.
Beneath the surface: water-table additives keep the population suggestible. Synthetic filtration nodes implanted at the throat let select individuals survive the controlled Blacksite districts. Memory can be erased with a needle.
The Galli — Final UE5 render
Resource 01
Sanjeevani
A sacred healing plant, its surface blooms quietly harvested by EIC field crews and logged clinically as "residual field waste." The Company strips ancient medicine from communities while repackaging it as controlled pharmaceutical output.
Resource 02
Sparshamani
A mineral compound with potent reactive properties when activated by heat. Woven into the clothing of laborers, embedded in technology, and used as a power source — harvested under the guise of routine "mineral extraction operations."
Resource 03
Syamantaka Mani
A kinetic-reactive crystal embedded in rock — a solar reactor. The EIC's most classified material. Described to workers as "dense, darkened residual slag" — while the Company's elite use it to power exoskeletons and overcome biological decay.
02 — The Characters
Three Sides of the Same Lie
Concept art by Zalak & Anshuman. Each character represents a different relationship with the EIC's stolen resources.
The Hero
Kavi Varma
A rugged laborer carrying the weight of the Blacksite. A Filtration Node is implanted at his throat — a synthetic organ required just to breathe in controlled districts. His clay pot is secretly modified with technical dials.
Blocks water-table additives.
Static-lock to prevent memory loss.
Clay vessel with hidden technical dials.
The Antagonist
Director Julian Vane
Tall, upright, frictionless — no loose fabric, no grime. Thin Sparshamani exoskeleton lines run along his limbs. He carries a Solar Cane powered by Syamantaka Mani ore, and uses Sparshamani to overcome biological decay.
Syamantaka ore — personal solar reactor.
Sparshamani collar device for structural hardening.
Frictionless plating against Blacksite grime.
The Side Character
Elder Mira
Flowing voluminous robes hiding technological tools. She carries a Sin-Eater Staff topped with inert quartz, and wears a ceremonial mask — hiding a modern filtration node beneath it. Her Sacred Flowers create a "False Perception" of divinity.
Secretly contains EIC mineral protocols.
Hidden in sleeve for synaptic rewriting.
Sanjeevani blooms as false spiritual value.
03 — The Environment
The Chai Stall as Resistance
Ganesh Tea Stall — Est. 1928. In a world of surveillance and water-table suppression, the Chai Stall is one of the last uncontrolled public spaces. Its hand-painted signs, clay kulhads, and dim devotional paintings are acts of cultural resistance.
Hand-painted Devanagari signage
Stall facade — monsoon rain, two sign panels
Dining interior — tables, rain-streaked beyond
"Ram Bharose Hindu Hotel Est. 1932" — the surrounding lane
Haveli balcony — clothesline, tungsten warmth
World Detail — The Blacksite
The city is divided. Above ground, the Galli appears free — wet, alive, chaotic. Below and behind the propaganda, the Blacksite districts require Filtration Nodes just to breathe. Only those the EIC permits survive there.
World Detail — Propaganda
EIC posters plaster every surface: "EIC: Protecting Your Future" and "Order is Freedom." Pamphlets scattered on wet cobblestones. Framed photographs hung on overhead wires — monitoring tools disguised as cultural decoration.
04 — Visual Development
Grey Box → Final Render
Three stages in Unreal Engine 5: white geometry blockout → sign dressing + prop layout → full PBR textures with Lumen lighting and Niagara rain particles.
Grey Box — Proportions & Scale
White geometry. Establishing galli width, building heights, car placement, and camera path.
Prop Dressing & Signage
Signs, wires, cart and street furniture placed. Buildings still grey — testing composition.
Final — PBR, Lumen GI, Niagara Rain
Full materials: wet moss, peeling plaster, rust, rain particles, neon reflections in flooded cobblestones.
05 — The Cinematic
Beat-by-Beat Walkthrough
First-person, body-cam. 35mm lens. Handheld micro-shakes simulating footsteps. Rain droplets on the lens, chromatic aberration at edges, auto-exposure when looking into bright neon.
Final Cinematic Render
First-person · Lumen GI · Niagara RainThe Texture
Camera looks down at wet asphalt. Raindrops hit a puddle — distorting a neon reflection. A soaked "EIC Independence" flyer stuck to the mud. Slowly tilts up.
The Obstacle
The Hindustan Ambassador Taxi blocks the lane. Headlights flare into the lens. Chrome bumper reflects cyan neon. Camera squeezes past, brushing the wet metal.
The Observation
The lane opens. Warm glow of the Chai Stall in the distance. Quick digital zoom — Neon Radio, rising steam. Snaps back to wide.
The Entry
Camera turns 90° toward a heavy teak-wood door. Pushed open. The hiss of rain cuts instantly to muffled bass-heavy silence.
The Safehouse
Dark hallway. Peeling green walls. Single flickering bulb. Two steps in — then turns back to look through the open door frame at the monsoon. Fade to black.
06 — Credits
A Group Effort
1947 was an interdisciplinary design project — world concept, 2D illustration, and 3D environment were each led by different team members.
World Concept
All Group Members
The Triratna lore, EIC rebranding premise, Blacksite districts, three resources (Sanjeevani, Sparshamani, Syamantaka Mani), and the three-character narrative were developed collectively.
2D Illustrations & Character Design
Character concept art and 2D illustrations for Kavi Varma, Director Julian Vane, and Elder Mira — including silhouette design, costume detail, and prop labelling.
3D Props
Modelling and texturing of individual 3D hero props — the Hindustan Ambassador taxi, Ganesh Tea Stall signage, chai counter, haveli architectural elements, and street furniture.
3D World & Unreal Engine
Full environment assembly in Unreal Engine 5 — level layout, Lumen lighting, Niagara rain particles, cinematic camera sequence, and the final walkthrough render.
Engine & Tools
Unreal Engine 5
Lumen Global Illumination
Nanite Virtualized Geometry
Niagara Particle System (rain)
Interdisciplinary Design · Assignments 1 & 2