10th Annual Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival SVA Silas and Beatrice Theaters 333 West 23 Street New York City MIAAC 2010 FESTIVAL PROGRAM TICKET INFO/POLICY WED 10 NOV THU 11 NOV FRI 12 NOV SAT 13 NOV SUN 14 NOV Join us and our guests: Mani Ratnam, A.R. Rahman, Mira Nair, Salman Rushdie, Shyam Benegal, Ketan Mehta, Dilip Mehta, Seema Biswas, Aparna Sen, Rahul Bose, Rituparno Ghosh, Deepti Naval, Tanishtha Chatterjee, Nandana Sen, Tushar Kapoor, Ajay Naidu, Sundaram Tagore, Natvar Bhavsar, Tracey Jackson, Madhur Jaffrey, Padma Lakshmi, Aasif Mandvi, Samrat Chakrabarti, Srijit Mukherjee, Srinivas Krishna, Jaideep Varma, Sanjay Nag, Ekta Kapoor, Raj Nidimoru, DK Krishna, Arun Vaidyanathan, Sarita Choudhuri, Sabrina Dhawan and many more at the oldest, most prestigious, fun, fabulous Indian Independent & Diaspora film festival in the USA. |
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 Wednesday, November 10 @ 6:00PM @ SVA Beatrice TheatreOpening Night Gala Screening: Red Carpet, Pre-screening Cocktails, Gala Screening |
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| Opening Night Film NOISE (Shor) Directed by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK India 2010, 111 min. In Hindi with English subtitles. US Premiere. |
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| The feature film version of the winner of MIAAC 2008’s Best Short Film Award is a gritty, funny composite portrait of Mumbai from the Detroit and Mumbai based director-duo. Inspired from various daily newspaper stories Noise revolves around three stories set during the popular and chaotic festival of Ganesha, the Elephant-God, in Mumbai. An expatriate returns home to an unwelcoming city. A bootlegger of bestsellers and his buddies find a bag of explosives. And a young cricketer must find the money to paying the price to get into a cricket team. With Sendhil Ramamurthy, Tusshar Kapoor | ||||||
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| AUTOGRAPH Directed by Srijit Mukherji. India 2010. 128 min. In Bengali with English subtitles. World Premiere The reigning matinee idol of Kolkata brashly accepts a proposal from a struggling but ambitious young director to make a film inspired by Satyajit Ray’s Nayak, itself a film about a star actor idol and a journalist, The director’s actress girlfriend gets cast as the journalist in the film and an unconventional relationship starts to brew between the three. The film develops two intertwined narratives with a film within a film, and reel and real life converge. With Prasenjit Chatterjee, Nandana Sen and Indranil Sengupta. NYU@MIAAC: A Conversation with Srijit Mukherji and Nandana Sen. Organized by Richard Allen. |
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| THE POETICS OF COLOR: NATVAR BHAVSAR Directed by Sundaram Tagore USA 2010. 56 min. In English. World Premiere. The life and work of the Indian-born artist Natvar Bhavsar who has lived and worked in New York since the mid-1960s comes in for an informed appraisal in this documentary. One of the early denizens of SoHo, which forms a rich backdrop for his artistic activity, Bhavsar combines techniques and colors central to both traditional Indian art and American Color Field painting. The film explores the multicultural nature of Bhavsar’s work and how that has influenced the trajectory of his career as Bhavsar interacted closely with such artistic luminariesas Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, and Clyfford Still. With: CHARULATA...A SEQUEL...OF THE LIFE UNTOLD! (Charulatayude Baakki...of the Life Untold!) Directed by Sangeeta Padmanabhan. India 2010, 24 min. In Malayalam with English subtitles. NY Premiere. A young girl breaks up with her lover, an aspiring film maker who dreams of making a sequel to Satyajit Ray's Charulata, as she grooms herself for 'the marriage market'. With Padmapriya and Vineeth. |
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| ASHES Directed by Ajay Naidu. USA 2010, 77 min. NY Premiere. Two brothers live in the inner city. One descends into the depths of manic depressive schizoid disorder. The other, Ashes, runs away from his responsibility and strives instead to become a wealthy drug dealer. Fraught with contradiction, the story is a look at the ease with which one man falls into an abyss even as the other ignores the deterioration of a person and his world around him. Ashes is a tale of mental illness, greed, and asks us to look at what it means to be a family, both real and imagined. With Faran Tahir, Samrat Chakrabarti, Reena Shah and Piper Perabo. With: LOOKING FOR YOU Directed by Cary Rajinder Sawhney. UK 2009, 12 min, NY Premiere. Identity, memory and history come together after a chance encounter. |
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| Festival Centerpiece MEMORIES IN MARCH Directed by Sanjoy Nag. India 2010, 103 min. In English, Hindi and Bengali. US Premiere. Siddharth, a 28-year old man, is killed in an accident and his grief stricken mother comes to Kolkata to collect his belongings. Looking through what the young Siddharth has left behind in his home, office and among his friends at the advertising agency he had recently joined, she discovers a son and a life she had not known existed. She finds she must share his belongings and her grief with others he had left behind. The finely observed and deeply moving screenplay by Rituparno Ghosh is sensitively filmed by Sanjoy Nag in his debut feature. With Deepti Naval, Rituparno Ghosh, Raima Sen. |
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| THE WAITING CITY Written and Directed by Claire McCarthy Australia, 2009, 107min. NY Premiere. Radha Mitchell plays the wife in this intimate portrait of an Australian couple whose troubled relationship is put to the test when they travel to Kolkata to adopt a child. Faced with an exhausting bureaucracy in a foreign city they barely know, Ben and Fiona each find very different ways to cope with their challenging journey and they find themselves drifting further and further apart. With the permanence of parenthood looming, they each try to gain a fresh perspective on their lives and find answers in unexpected places. Also with Joel Edgerton, Samrat Chakrabarti, and Isabel Lucas. With: THE BELOVED WITNESS Directed by Dwaipayan Banerjee. USA,2010, 20 min. NY Premiere. The poetry of Agha Shahid Ali is acknowledged to be one of the most powerful representations of the war-torn region of Kashmir. This film looks back at Shahid's life in exile in America, where he transformed 20th century American poetry by weaving it together with Islamic forms, while at the same time leaving an unforgettable impression in the lives of many artists, writers and friends. |
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| SONGS OF MASHANGVA Directed by Oinam Doren India, 20010, 72 mins, US Premiere, English A thousand year old musical tradition rooted in a unique tribal culture faces extinction when European education and Christian life make their way into the hilly Ukhrul district of Manipur - home to the Tangkhul Nagas. This film explores how in a modern society where 100% of the natives are now Christians, one man struggles to keep alive a folk culture, where the masters have either died or are too old. Rewben Mashangva, who is himself is a Christian, is poorly educated but passionate about reminding the Tangkhul Nagas of their past with his brand of folk and Naga-folk blues, unique ‘haokuirat’ traditional hairstyle and costumes. |
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| LEAVING HOME: THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF INDIAN OCEAN Directed by Jaideep Varma India 2009, 115 min. In English, Hindi and Bengali. NY Premiere. Leaving Home is the story of four men who make music together as Indian Ocean, the most significant music band from India. Based in Delhi, this band has been making path-breaking, timeless music outside the mainstream for almost 20 years. Using primarily Western instruments, Indian Ocean has created a very Indian sound which is uniquely their own. Their music is showcased in three different ways – in concert with all their stage finery, a casual performance in their own neighborhood, and raw improvisations from inside their rehearsal room. With: BORROWED TIME Directed by Nikhil Iyengar. USA, 2010, 8 min. NY Premiere One day John looks out of this window and sees something that will change his life forever. |
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| GANESH, BOY WONDER Directed by Srinivas Krishna. Canada 2009, 72 min. NY Premiere. Krishna and Jayamma, a working class Indian couple who prayed to the god Ganesh to bless them with a boy, never dreamed that their son would actually look like his namesake, the elephant-headed deity. Years after giving up all hope of finding medical help, an accidental meeting with a reporter's brother leads to a national television story on Ganesh's facial deformity. The resulting media sensation draws the interest of India's rich and powerful, and a Canadian plastic surgeon, Dr. Sanjeev Kaila changes their lives forever. With: PITCH OF DREAMS: CRICKET IN AMERICA Directed by Rohit Kulkarni. USA 2009, 40 min. NY Premiere. A unique and fascinating history of a sport that once enjoyed success in this country for over 200 years before fading away, until immigrants from cricket playing nations spearheaded a revival. |
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| Special Children’s Program THE WHITE ELEPHANT Directed by Aijaz Khan. India, 2008,115 min. In Hindi, with English subtitles. NY Premiere. On the day of the sacred festival, Nathan, the Holy Elephant of the village, chooses a worthless village drunkard as its new keeper. The poor man who finds it difficult to provide for his own family finds himself saddled with great honor. But the Holy Elephant enables our protagonist to not only face the new challenges, but also defeat the evil black magician and a conniving rich woman who try to steal the Elephant. With Tannishtha Chatterjee, Neena Gupta, Piyush Mishra and Prashant Narayanan. |
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| Special Children’s Program RAMAYANA: THE EPIC 3D Animation. Written and Directed by Chetan Desai. India 2010, 100 min. In English. Rama, the handsome prince of Ayodhya, is in exile with the beautiful Sita and with his valiant brother Laxman. One day Sita is kidnapped by the mighty Ravan, the demon king. And thus begins the epic battle between the forces of good and evil as Rama and Laxman begin their search for Sita with the help of the monkey-god Hanuman. The Ramayana, the most beloved of all Indian stories, gets its first 3D computer animated retelling in this production from Ketan Mehta. Featuring the voices of Lisa Ray and Kabir Bedi. |
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| THE JAPANESE WIFE Brought to you in North America by Databazaar Media Ventures Directed by Aparna Sen India 2009, 105 min. In Bengali and English, with English subtitles. NY Premiere. A school teacher in the beautiful Sunderbans, the great tidal forest in the Gangetic delta, writes letters to a sweet, shy Japanese girl in Yokohama. They fall in love over the course of their long correspondence and get married despite having never met. Then a widow takes refuge in the teacher’s home, bringing a piquant twist to his life and his love for the Japanese woman and a delicate and improbable love story involving three people begins to unfold. The Japanese Wife is wonderfully shot, with Rahul Bose playing the graying schoolteacher across the span of almost two decades. Also featuring Raima Sen and Chigasu Takaku. Free event for THE JAPANESE WIFE ticket holders : An Afternoon with Rahul Bose, Saturday November 13 @ 2PM Presented by AIF NYYP NYU@MIAAC: A Conversation with Aparna Sen and Rahul Bose. Organized by Richard Allen. |
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| India Abroad Special Program RAAVANAN Directed by Mani Ratnam India 2010, 127 min. In Tamil with English subtitles. NY Premiere. Veeraiya is an uncouth and feared brigand pursued by a policeman specializing in setting up encounters with the lawless. But the bandit kidnaps the policeman’s wife and takes her into the deepest of jungles, holding her hostage and finally succumbing to her exceptional beauty and fiery disposition. Director Mani Ratnam teams up once again with Oscar and Grammy winning music composer A.R. Rahman and cinematographer Santosh Sivan to set a magnificently lush stage for his take on the story of the Ramayana. Shot simultaneously in Tamil and Hindi, this original version stars the magnetic Vikram as the bandit. Also featuring Aishwarya Rai, Prabhu, Priyamani and Karthik. NYU@MIAAC: A Conversation with Mani Ratnam. Organized by Richard Allen. |
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| LAHORE Directed by Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan India 2009, 126 min. In Hindi and Urdu, with English subtitles. NY Premiere. A kick-boxing champion from India is torn between the ideals of his sport, and a raging desire for vengeance as he steps into a ring against a Pakistani fighter whom he holds responsible for his brother’s death. A stylized and choreographed martial arts film, Chauhan won the National Award for his directorial debut that brings brotherhood, patriotism and love into play as the two traditional enemies meet in the ring. With Aanaahad, Shraddha Das, Nafisa Ali, Sabyasachi Chakravarthy, Farooque Shaikh and Kelly Dorji. NYU@MIAAC: A Conversation with Director Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan and Music Composer Wayne Sharpe. Organized by Richard Allen. |
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| I AM SCARED (Achchamundu! Achchamundu!) Written and Directed by Arun Vaidyanathan. India 2009, 110 min. In English and Tamil. NY Premiere. Senthil is a software professional with an executive job in New Jersey. He leads a happy middle-class life with his wife and daughter Rinku. One day they hire a housepainter for their suburban home and a series of unsettling events begins to unfold and the executive begins to realize that his wife and daughter are in grave danger. Vaidyanathan’s well-handled and creepy thriller takes you on a suspenseful ride, even as it delivers one of the freshest portrayals of the lives of professional South Asian immigrants in the US. With Prasanna, Sneha, and John Shea. |
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| LIFE! CAMERA ACTION Directed by Rohit Gupta. USA, 90 min. In English, Hindi, and Punjabi with English subtitles.World Premiere. Reina, a young, Indian-American woman, sets off to pursue a career in filmmaking against the wishes of her family. She struggles to complete her annual film project, working with her classmates and with encouragement from unexpected quarters. As she tries to make ends meet, her double shifts at an Indian restaurant and a DVD store become a part of her film. Reina eventually begins to see the need to reach out to her estranged parents as she begins to know herself and become her own person. With Dipti Mehta, Shaheed K, Woods, Noor Naghmi and John Crann. Life! Camera Action... Won - Award Of Excellence - Feature Film 2010, Award Of Merit for Direction, Cinematography & Dramatic Impact at the Accolade Film Awards in California. NYU@MIAAC: Mobile Bollywood! Students in Professor Karl Bardosh’s Cell Phone Cinema Class at NYU screen their 1-minute interpretations of popular Bollywood film songs. |
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| RAFTING TO BOMBAY Directed by Erez Laufer Israel 2008, 71 minutes. In English and Hebrew, with English subtitles. NY Premiere. While filming his father revisiting his childhood city of Mumbai, India, Israeli director Erez Laufer finds himself caught in the worst terror attack in the history of the city. As the drama of the terrorist takeover of Chabad House in Mumbai unfolds, the Laufer family recounts how they found refuge there in the 1940s after fleeing the Nazis. Past and present collide as the family history is echoed in a contemporary war, and a little-known story emerges of the Jewish refugees who found a safe haven in Mumbai during World War II. |
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| With: UNTOLD Directed by Vasu Vangala. India 2010, 16 min. In Hindi with English subtitles. A tragic accident happens and a man must choose what to mourn for. NYU@MIAAC: A Conversation with Director Erez Laufer. Organized by Richard Allen. |
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| THE WELL (Vihir) Directed by Umesh Kulkarni. India 2009, 115 min. In Marathi with English subtitles. NY Premiere. Two adolescent boys, cousins who are best friends, reconnect at a family wedding. Sameer, an extrovert, and the younger one of the two, has a difficult time understanding his cousin Nachiket’s newfound philosophical meanderings. Their game of hide-and-seek takes an unusual turn when Nachiket mysteriously dies and Sameer sets out on a journey to search for him and to hopefully “find” his cousin once again. With Madan Deodhar, Alok Rajwade, Mohan Agashe, and Girish Kulkarni. With: ANNA SOUND PLEASE Directed by Tangella Madhavi. India 2010, 22 min, In Hindi and Telugu with English subtitles. A filmmaker shows her work to a group of day-laborers who are diehard film fans. NYU@MIAAC: A Conversation with Writer Girish Kulkarni. Organized by Richard Allen. |
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| THE MAN BEYOND THE BRIDGE (Paltadacho Munis) Directed by Laxmikant Shetgaonkar India 2009, 96 min. In Konkani with English subtitles. A widowed forest ranger Vinayak develops an intimate relationship with a mentally ill woman and risks becoming an outcast. When she becomes pregnant, a conflict arises between a society that refuses to take responsibility for one of its members, and one man’s endeavor to bring her into his life. When it was awarded the FIPRESCI Prize at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2009 the film was cited for its exploration of “smaller but enduring dilemmas, drawing together keen environmental sensitivity with a nuanced view of village dynamics.” With Chitranjan Giri, Veena Jomkar, Prasanthi Talpanker, Vasanth Josalkar, Deepak Amonkar. With: BELL BAJAO (Ring the Bell) Award-winning short films on domestic violence. Produced by Breakthrough. |
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| Closing Night Film COOKING WITH STELLA Directed by Dilip Mehta. Canada, 2009, 103 min. In English & Hindi, with English subtitles. NY Premiere. Stella, in service to Canadian diplomats in New Delhi is brilliant as a cook – and brilliant at creatively padding her salary. A newly posted Canadian diplomat and her husband Michael, a chef back home in Ottawa, arrive with their baby. Stella agrees to be his “cooking guru”. Michael learns many important lessons from his teacher, including glorious traditional South Indian cooking. But the cozy domestic set-up implodes when an honest nanny, joins the household one day. With Seema Biswas, Don McKellar and Lisa Ray. |
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Saturday, November 13 @ 3:30 PM @ SVA Beatrice Theatre 
Sunday, November 14 @ 6:00 PM @ SVA Beatrice Theatre