Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles

 

The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) announced the Opening Night Gala film, SOLD, a harrowing and inspiring story of child trafficking directed by Jeffrey D. Brown, executive produced by Emma Thompson, and starring Gillian Anderson, David Arquette, and Seema Biswas.

The full line-up of screenings and events will be announced in mid-March. The festival is widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema. Celebrating its 12th year, IFFLA will run April 8 to 13 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception.

Through one extraordinary girl’s journey, SOLD illustrates the brutality of child trafficking, a crime experienced by millions of girls every year around the globe. SOLD is a clarion call to action and a testament to the resilience of the human spirit.

“Because of SOLD’s marvelous script and courageous and brilliant cast,” said Emma Thompson, “it is a story that we can ALL watch – so that we may understand the processes of slavery in modern India and feel able to act without feeling the kind of rage and hopelessness that gets in the way of doing anything.”

SOLD is an adaptation of the National Book Award-nominated novel by Patricia McCormick, based on true accounts. The book has been translated into 32 languages and is a powerful entry point to introduce young people to the issue of modern day slavery.

Director Jeffery D. Brown and select A-list cast and supporters will be in attendance at the Opening Night Gala.

Nirvana-Bombay Palace will host the Opening Night Gala Reception in Beverly Hills. This year’s exclusive after-party will align with Nirvana’s sophisticated and positively vibrant atmosphere in an intimate setting that features masterful culinary renditions of Indian cuisine.

In addition, the appointment of Jasmine Jaisinghani as the festival’s first-ever Artistic Director was announced today by Christina Marouda, IFFLA’s Founder and Chair of the Board.

“We’re thrilled to have Jasmine on board as our Artistic Director,” said Marouda. “She was our first Festival Coordinator in 2005, and has been associated with IFFLA since. This feels like a full circle, and we could not think of a more deserving person to take on this position.”

Jasmine Jaisinghani comes to IFFLA from AFI FEST where she served as the Cultural and Industry Relations Director and headed Guest Services. An independent producer of Indian-Mexican descent, Jasmine has also worked extensively in the music industry, including a tenure at George Harrison’s record label Dark Horse.

Rounding out this year’s programming team are Director of Programming Mike Dougherty, Documentary Film Programmer Sudeep Sharma, and Short Film Programmer Thouly Dosios.

 http://youtu.be/NLy6B6wcaI4

Images via GA/WP

Read more

The 11^th annual Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) wrapped on Sunday evening (April 14) with a red carpet and gala fete that included the Los Angeles premiere of Deepa Mehta’s MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN, and the presentation of the festival’s Grand Jury and Audience Choice Awards.

Ashim Ahluwalia’s MISS LOVELY took home the Grand Jury Prize for Best Feature, with an honorable mention for SHIP OF THESEUS directed by Anand Gandhi. The Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary went to Sushrut Jain for BEYOND ALL BOUNDARIES, and for Best Short to UNRAVEL directed by Meghna Gupta, with an honorable mention for TATPASCHAT directed by Vasudev Keluskar.

GRAND JURY AWARDS

BEST FEATURE: MISS LOVELY directed by Ashim Ahluwalia
HONORABLE MENTION: SHIP OF THESEUS directed by Anand Gandhi

BEST DOCUMENTARY: BEYOND ALL BOUNDARIES directed by Sushrut Jain
BEST SHORT FILM: UNRAVEL directed by Meghna Gupta
HONORABLE MENTION: TATPASCHAT directed by Vasudev Keluskar

 AUDIENCE AWARDS

BEST FEATURE: FILMISTAAN directed by Nitin Kakkar
BEST DOCUMENTARY: BEYOND ALL BOUNDARIES directed by Sushrut Jain
BEST SHORT: UNRAVEL directed by Meghna Gupta

Read more

 

The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) has picked its jury for the 2013 festival, and added four films to the program – Toronto Film Festival favorite SHIP OF THESEUS in its U.S. Premiere; the powerful environmental documentary narrated by Darryl Hannah, PAD YATRA: A GREEN JOURNEY; the Walt Disney animated Family Day film ARJUN: THE WARRIOR PRINCE; and short film IRON TRACKS (LOHPATH). 

Three juries will award prizes to the best of the competition films in the categories of Feature, Short, and Documentary films. The 2013 feature film jurors are: International Director of the Feature Film Program at the Sundance Institute Paul Federbush, director/editor/writer Kanika Myer (HALO, HEART OF INDIA), and Assistant Curator of Film Programs at LACMA Bernardo Rondeau. The Best Documentary Award will be decided by The Hollywood Reporter and Los Angeles Times film critic Sheri Linden, Senior Programmer at Film Independent Maggie Mackay, and Academy Awardâ-nominatedfilmmaker Jessica Sanders (AFTER INNOCENCE). Judging the short films are filmmaker and IFFLA alum Prashant Bhargava (PATANG), Film Curator and Director of Industry Programming at Palm Springs ShortFest Kathleen McInnis, and actress Sheetal Sheth (ABCD, LOOKING FOR COMEDY IN THE MUSLIM WORLD).

About the Films:

SHIP OF THESEUS

U.S. Premiere
India/2012/140min/DCP
Director: Anand Gandhi
Producers: Mukesh Shah, Sohum Shah
Screenwriter: Anand Gandhi
Cast: Neeraj Kabi, Sohum Shah, Aida El Kashef, Faraz Khan, Vinay Shukla, Amba Sanyal

The stories of three disparate people collide, as they struggle through trials unbeknownst to each other. Relying on her remarkable intuition and the help of her boyfriend, a blind woman enjoys a successful career as a photographer. When she starts to regain her eyesight, she is confronted by her own artistic limitations and an ever-changing sense of identity. A man of unshakable principles has committed his life to fighting pharmaceutical companies against animal abuse. When he is diagnosed with a severe illness, he must choose between standing by his long held moral beliefs and his own survival. An aimless stockbroker who has recently received a kidney transplant discovers a sense of purpose when he meets a man whose kidney was unlawfully stolen. As the three characters grapple to redefine themselves in the face of their new realities, the film raises the question of what constitutes identity when integral parts of us change. The three narratives gracefully converge into a soulful finale that reveals our wondrous interconnectedness in the ephemeron of life.

Elegantly layered in its themes, evocatively photographed, and featuring beautifully understated performances, SHIP OF THESEUS reveals an original and razor sharp directorial voice in this feature debut from playwright Anand Gandhi.

English, Hindi (English subtitles)

PAD YATRA: A GREEN ODYSSEY
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/India/68min/2012
Director: Wendy J.N. Lee
Producers: Wendy J.N. Lee, Michelle Yeoh
Narrator: Darryl Hannah

PAD YATRA: A GREEN ODYSSEY takes us on an incredible journey with 700 souls who set out to trek across the Himalayas with a single passion, to spread their message of ecological compassion and global warming.  Shot with solar power by Ladakhi monk Ngawang Sodpa, the documentary features notable supporters including actor Aamir Khan. Michelle Yeoh serves as Executive Producer, and the film is beautifully narrated by Daryl Hannah.

English, Tibetan (English Subtitles)

IFFLA FAMILY DAY FILM

ARJUN: THE WARRIOR PRINCE
India/2012/96min/DCP
Director: Arnab Chaudhari
Producers: Ronnie Screwvala, Siddharth Roy Kapur
Screenwriters: Rajesh Devraj
Cast: Yuddvir Bakolia, Ila Arun, Anjan Srivastav, Sachin Khedekar, Vishnu Sharma

 [caption id="attachment_3454" align="alignnone" width="550"]ARJUN: THE WARRIOR PRINCE[/caption]

ARJUN: THE WARRIOR PRINCE is the retelling of a beloved tale from the epic Mahabharata: the remarkable coming-of-age story of Arjun, the exceptional archer, who grows from timid prince to fearless warrior. This brilliant collaboration between UTV Motion Pictures and Walt Disney vividly captures the lavish grandeur and bloodthirsty intrigues of the time in stunning animation. Exhilarating battle scenes, catchy musical sequences, and a delightfully unexpected final act make ARJUN: THE WARRIOR PRINCE an engrossing cinematic experience for children and grownups alike.

Hindi (English subtitles)

IRON TRACKS (LOHPATH)
World Premiere / Screens with SALMA
India/2012/24min
Director: Rupesh Aggarwal
Producers: Deep Singh Kakkad, Anurag Kashyap Films Pvt Ltd

[caption id="attachment_3455" align="alignnone" width="550"]IRON TRACKS (LOHPATH)[/caption]

IRON TRACKS is an ode to the innocence corrupted and humanity lost in the vicious victimization of children.Hindi (English subtitles)

 

Read more

The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) which runs April 9 to 14, 2013 at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, will screen an impressive lineup of narrative and documentary features and short films at this year’s festival reflecting the rich diversity of Indian cinema,

Highlights include: a special screening of Mira Nair’s THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST, a political thriller based on the New York Times bestseller with a star-studded cast; MISS LOVELY by Ashim Ahluwalia, a dark look at the seedy underbelly of Bollywood C-movies and soft-porn during the 1980’s, that premiered in Un Certain Regard at Cannes last year; PEDDLERS, Vasan Bala’s directorial debut, which premiered at the 2012 International Critics’ Week, a crime thriller following the desperation of young drug runners who are merely looking to survive; SHAHID, based on the true story of Shahid Azmi, a human rights activist murdered in India in 2010, directed by Hansal Mehta and produced by Guneet Monga and Anurag Kashyap; and Sundance and Berlin favorite SALMA, directed by Kim Longinotto, a documentary about one South Indian woman’s courageous journey in the face of mass oppression.

Anurag Kashyap’s GANGS OF WASSEYPUR will open the festival, while Deepa Mehta’s MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN will feature as the closing night film.

Attending the festival this year to present their films will be a host of celebrated filmmakers, including Mira Nair, Deepa Mehta, Anurag Kashyap, Guneet Monga, Hansal Mehta, Vasan Bala, Nitin Kakkar, and S.S. Rajamouli among others.

Other titles include a documentary about India’s obsession with cricket called BEYOND ALL BOUNDARIES, which will have its world premiere at the festival, and the Malayalam extravaganza EEGA, a delightful tale of love, rebirth, and revenge with dazzling special effects.

Two films at the festival this year celebrate the power of Indian cinema: CELLULOID MAN, a documentary about beloved Indian film expert and archivist P.K. Nair, and the charming FILMISTAN, the fictional tale of one man’s love of Hindi films and how cinema has the power to unite us all.

The festival’s popular Bollywood by Night series returns this year with three films by legendary director, writer, producer, and Hindi cinema’s ‘king of romance,’ Yash Chopra.: KABHI KABHIE (1976), SILSILA (1981), and CHANDNI (1989).

The lineup of films include:

OPENING NIGHT GALA

GANGS OF WASSEYPUR I
Los Angeles Premiere
India/2012/159 minutes
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Writers: Zeeshan Qadri, Sachin Ladia, Akhilesh Jaiswal, Anurag Kashyap,
Producers: Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, Anurag Kashyap, Guneet Monga, Sunil Bohra,
Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Richa Chaddha, Reema Sen, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Nawazuddin Siddiqui,

Epic in scope, GANGS OF WASSEYPUR I and II is a mafia revenge saga that chronicles the violent and bloody decade-long turf war between two mob families.
Hindi with English Subtitles

CLOSING NIGHT GALA

MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN

Los Angeles Premiere
Canada/United Kingdom/2012/148 minutes
Director: Deepa Mehta
Writer: Salman Rushdie
Executive Producers: Deepa Mehta, Dilip Mehta, Salman Rushdie, Doug Mankoff, Andrew Spaulding, Steven Silver, Neil Tabatznik, Elizabeth Karlsen, David Hamilton, Stephen Woolley
Producer: David Hamilton
Cast: Satya Bhabha, Shahana Goswami, Rajat Kapoor, Seema Biswas, Shriya Saran, Siddharth, Ronit Roy, Rahul Bose, Anita Majumdar, Zaib Shaikh, Anupam Kher 

Oscar©-nominated director Deepa Mehta brings us her latest work, MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN, a poetic and visual journey scaling time and space.
English and Urdu with English subtitles

FEATURE FILMS

EEGA

India / 2012 / 134min
Director: S.S Rajamouli
Producer: Korrapati Sai
Screenwriter:  S.S Rajamouli
Cast: Sudeep, Nani, Samantha Ruth Prabhu

EECHA flies into our hearts and proves that with true love, even the most unlikely of heroes can conquer any adversity, no matter how large – or in this case, how small.
Telugu with English subtitles

FILMISTAAN

Los Angeles Premiere
India / 2012 / 116min
Director: Nitin Kakkar
Producer: Nitin Kakkar
Screenwriter: Nitin Kakkar,
Cast: Sharib Hashmi, Inaamulhaq, Kumud Mishra, Gopal Datt

FILMISTAN is Nitin Kakkar’s feature-length directorial debut, and has won hearts across the globe at festivals like MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, Gothenburg Film Festival, Jaipur International Film Festival, and the International Film Festival of Kerala.
Hindi with English subtitles

MISS LOVELY

Los Angeles Premiere
India / 2012 / 110 minutes
Director: Ashim Ahluwalia
Producers: Shumona Goel, Sanjay Shah
Screenwriters:  Ashim Ahluwalia, Uttam Sirur
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Niharika Singh, Anil George, Zeena Bhatia

The story of two brothers immersed in the seedy underbelly of Bollywood C-movies and soft-porn during the 1980’s. MISS LOVELY made its world premiere in competition in the Un Certain Regard at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival.
Hindi with English subtitles

PEDDLERS

Los Angeles Premiere
India / 2012 / 116min
Director: Vasan Bala
Producers: Anurag Kashyap, Guneet Monga 
Screenwriter: Vasan Bala
Cast: Gulshan Devaiya, Nishikanth Kamath, Nimrat Kaur

PEDDLERS, debuting at the 2012 International Critics’ Week, which runs parallel to the Cannes Film Festival, is a crime thriller following the desperation of young drug runners who are merely looking to survive.
Hindi with English subtitles

THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST

USA / 2013 / 128min 
Director: Mira Nair
Producer: Lydia Dean Pilche
Screenwriters: Ami Boghani, Mohsin Hamid, William Wheeler
Cast: Riz Ahmed, Kate Hudson, Liev Schreiber, Kiefer Sutherland, Om Puri, Meesha Shafi, Shabana Azmi

Based on the best-selling novel by Mohsin Hamid, THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST is a riveting thriller about the story of Changez, a young Pakistani man chasing corporate success on Wall Street in the era of globalisation.
English

SHAHID

U.S. Premiere
India / 2012 / 126min
Director: Hansal Mehta
Producers: Guneet Monga, Sunil Bohra
Screenwriter: Sameer Gautam Singh
Cast: Raj Kumar Yadav, Prabhleen Sandhu, Baljinder Kaur, Vipin Sharma, Mohb Ayyup Mohd Ayyub

Shot in secrecy, SHAHID is based on true events and the life of Shahid Azmi, a defense lawyer and human rights activist who was murdered in 2010 at the age of 32, in retribution for his defense of a man accused in the Mumbai terror attacks.
Hindi with English subtitles

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES

CELLULOID MAN

Los Angeles Premiere
India / 2012 / 150min
Director: Shivendra Singh Dungarpur
Cast: P.K. Nair

An exploration of the life and work of the legendary guardian of Indian cinema, P.K. Nair.
English

BEYOND ALL BOUNDARIES

World Premiere
India / 2013 / 96min
Director/Writer: Sushrut Jain
Eat, sleep, breathe cricket.
Hindi with English subtitles 

MOHAMMED TO MAYA

Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2012 / 74min Director/Producer/Editor: Jeff Roy
Cast: Maya Jafer

Meet Maya: a 42 year-old from Chennai, India, who goes through a life-changing sexual- reassignment surgery.
English

SALMA

Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2012 / 91min
Director: Kim Longinotto

Master documentarian Kim Longinotto returns to IFFLA with her latest compelling work, SALMA, the extraordinary story of one South Indian woman’s courageous journey in the face of mass oppression.
Hindi with English subtitles

BOLLYWOOD BY NIGHT

KABHI KABHIE
India / 1976 / 178min
Director: Yash Chopra 
Producer: Yash Chopra 
Screenwriter: Pamela Chopra (story), Sagar Sarhadi (screenplay)
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman, Rakhee, Neetu Singh, Rishi Kapoor

KABHI KABHIE remains one of Hindi cinema’s most beloved films. Sweeping several awards, it began a definitive tradition of romance in Hindi cinema, which Mr. Chopra mastered to perfection and his fans came to love. 
Hindi with English subtitles

SILSILA
India / 1981 / 183min
Director/Producer: Yash Chopra
Screenwriters: Preeti Bedi, Yash Chopra, Sagar Sarhadi, Romesh Sharma
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Rekha, Shashi Kapoor, Sanjeev Kumar, Kulbhushan Karbandha

A melodrama in the best sense of the word, SILSILA is stunningly shot in spectacular locations. It is remembered both for its pairing of Amitabh and Rekha and its evocative poetry. A must-see for lovers of mainstream Bollywood cinema. 
Hindi with English subtitles

CHANDNI
India / 1989 / 187min
Director/Producer: Yash Chopra 
Screenwriter: Kamna Chandra, Umesh Kalbagh, Arun Kaul, Sagar Sarhadi
Cast: Sridevi, Rishi Kapoor, Vinod Khanna

Shot in beautiful locations in Switzerland, the CHANDNI was a turning point for Chopra and established him as the successful commercial director of the 1980s. Sridevi was to become the star of the decade and the film launched what was to become Bollywood’s signature style: a musical genre combined with an ensemble cast.  CHANDNI must be seen on full screen in order to appreciate Chopra’s signature elements: stunning sets, costumes, colorful landscapes all mingled with a star cast.
Hindi with English subtitles

SHORTS

…OR DIE
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2012 / 14min
Director: Gregory Bonsignore and John Petaja

This is what happens in Hollywood when three ‘brown’ actors meet with an entertainment exec to pitch their latest internet masterpiece.
English

AFTERGLOW
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India / 2012 / 19min
Director: Kaushal Oza 

Fed up with entertaining a slew of annoying guests, Minocher defies her traditional Parsi community and mourns the loss of her husband in her own way.
English, Gujarati with English subtitles 

DOSA HUNT
Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2012 / 22min
Directors: Amrit Singh, Sam Carroll

Searching for a connection to the motherland…through your stomach.
English 

HERE AND AWAY
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
USA/India / 2012 / 11min
Director/Producer: Meena Nanji

A village, standing at the crossroads between tradition and modernity, is seen through the curious perspective of a young boy.
Hindi with English subtitles

HOMECOMING
Shorts Program 1
Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2011 / 26min
Director/Producer: Gursimran Sandhu
Producer: Michael Candelori

When Nina Patel’s strict Indian parents refuse to let her attend the eighth-grade homecoming dance, she resorts to emotional blackmail.
English

HUMBLE THE POET
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2011 / 12min
Directors/Producers: Brendan Nahmias, Ruth Paul

A bold and personal look at Sikh hip-hop artist, Humble the Poet, a second generation South Asian poet and musician defining his own cultural identity.
English

ENNAKUM ORU PER
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
Sri Lanka / 2011 / 12min
Director: Suba Sivakumaran

A nun residing in a monastery hides her daughter from an approaching military as civil war ravages modern day Sri Lanka. 
Tamil with English subtitles

IKA
Shorts Program 2
U.S. Premiere
India / 2012 / 15min
Director/Producer: Raam Reddy

Who needs a camera to make a film when you have a cardboard box, a magnifying glass, an old VHS tape and a chicken?
Telugu with English subtitles

QUEEN OF MY DREAMS
Shorts Program 1
USA/2012/3min/DCP
Directors: Fawzia Mirza, Ryan Logan

Fawzia falls under the spell of Bollywood heroines and their promise of love and feminine perfection – in a queer light.
English 

RAGS TO PADS
World Premiere
India/US / 2012 / 3min
WORLD PREMIERE
Director/Producer: Chithra Jeyaram

Fed up with his wife’s lack of sanitary menstrual hygiene, a poor villager takes matters into his own hands, and unexpectedly starts a small revolution resulting in a million jobs for rural women.
Tamil with English subtitles

RECURRENCE
Shorts Program 1
World Premiere
USA / 2013 / 7min
Directors/Producers: Sonia Albert Sobrino, Miriam Albert Sobrino

A lush, visual exploration of the transcendental space between memory and dream.
English 

RIPPLES
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
USA / 2012 / 4min
Director/Producer: Shreyasi Das 

An elderly woman remembers her youth back home in Calcutta, India in beautiful animation.
English 

TATPASCHAT
Shorts Program 1
World Premiere
India / 2012 / 15min
Director: Vasudev Keluskar

One odd day, every single boy at a reform school becomes obedient.
Hindi with English subtitles

UNRAVEL
Shorts Program 2
Los Angeles Premiere
UK / 2012 / 14min
Director: Meghna Gupta 

Tall tales, dreams and stories are spun as Western society’s least wanted clothes are literally unraveled a world away. 
Hindi with English subtitles

 

Read more