Ribbon

[caption id="attachment_25859" align="aligncenter" width="1108"] Long Live Brij Mohan[/caption] The 2017 South Asian International Film Festival in New York City is celebrating its 14th year by showcasing the very best in South Asian independent cinema.  The festival throws open its doors with the opening night world premiere of Long Live Brij Mohan, before going on to showcase its centerpiece film Na Maloom Afraad 2 and will close with the New York premiere of Ribbon. The 14th Annual South Asian International Film Festival presented by HBO runs from Wednesday, December 13, 2017, to Sunday, December 17, 2017, in New York City. All screenings taking place at Landmark Sunshine Theater at 143 East Houston Street in the East Village, New York City. OPENING NIGHT FILM: Long Live Brij Mohan Directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat / 2017 / India / In Hindi (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / World Premiere / 105 mins. Wednesday, Dec. 13, 7:30 p.m. Brij Mohan, a hosiery shop owner in a busy middle-class market in Delhi, is fed up with his ball-crusher wife and mounting debts. In a desperate attempt to escape his wretched life, he changes his appearance and adopts a new identity as Amar Sethi … but in the process, ends up committing a botched-up murder. He then runs off with his younger girlfriend, hopeful of making a new beginning. But instead, as luck would have it, he finds himself trapped in a web of his own karma. CENTERPIECE FILM: Na Maloom Afraad 2 Directed by Nabeel Qureshi / 2017 / Pakistan / In Urdu (with English subtitles). Narrative Feature / North American Premiere / 118 mins. Saturday, Dec. 16, 7:30 p.m. Na Maloom Afraad 2 is an upcoming sequel to the 2014 Pakistani hit thriller film Na Maloom Afraad. The leading cast returning includes Fahad Mustafa, Javed Sheikh, Mohsin Abbas Haider and Urwa Hocane, along with Hania Amir in the lead and Marina Khan in her debut performance. The film is a hysterical comedy of errors when an extravagant Sheikh arrives in Cape Town with his precious and infamous “Gold Pot” – a toilet bowl made of gold! The Pot mistakenly finds its way to the three misfits – who call themselves Na Maloom Afraad – and are clueless about what to do with it. The movie unfolds as the South African police, smugglers and the Sheikh’s entourage start looking for the Gold Pot as the three misfits do their best to escape unscathed. CLOSING NIGHT FILM: Ribbon Directed by Rakhee Sandilya / 2017 / India / In Hindi (with English subtitles). Narrative Feature / New York Premiere / 105 mins. Sunday, Dec. 17, 7:30 p.m. After a sudden pregnancy, a young urban couple is overwhelmed by their baby girl and discover that parenthood comes with its own challenges. And it takes more than just love to stick through all of life’s curveballs.

SAIFF 2017’s Feature Competition line-up:

Mona Darling Directed by Shashi Sudigala / India / 2017 / In Hindi (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / International Premiere / 111 mins. In English We Say Directed by Harish Vyas / India / 2017 / In Hindi (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / World Premiere / 104 mins. Half Widow Directed by Danish Renzu / India / 2017 / In Urdu (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / World Premiere / 91 mins. Maacher Jhol Directed by Pratim D. Gupta / India / 2017 / In Bengali and French (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / New York Premiere / 108 mins. Code Name Abdul Directed by Eshwar Gunturu / India / 2017 / In Hindi (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / North American Premiere / 114 mins.

SAIFF 2017’s Feature Spectrum line-up:

Azad Directed by Rehan Sheikh / Pakistan / 2017 / In Urdu (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / World Premiere / 121 mins. Coma Café Directed by Avi Vasu / India / 2017 / In English and Hindi (with English subtitles) Narrative Feature / North America Premiere / 104 mins.

SAIFF 2017’s Short Film & HBO Competitors line-up:

Please Don’t Call The Cops Directed by Kartikye Gupta / United States / 2017 / In Hindi (with English subtitles) Narrative Short / World Premiere / 15 mins. Safeword (HBO Competitor) Directed by Mukesh Vidyasagar / United States / 2017 / English Narrative Short / World Premiere / 3 mins. Cobbler’s Dream (HBO Competitor) Directed by Sydney Chandrasekara / Sri Lanka / 2017 / In Sinhalese (with English subtitles) Narrative Short / World Premiere / 15 mins. Diwal’oween (HBO Competitor) Directed by Shilpa Mankikar / United States / 2017 / English Narrative Short / World Premiere / 33 mins. The Pits (HBO Competitor) Directed by Shetu Modi / Canada / 2017 / English Narrative Short / New York Premiere / 6 mins. The Language of the Ball (HBO Competitor) Directed by Ramón Rodríguez / United States / 2017 / English Narrative Short / New York Premiere / 9 mins.

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