Nitin Kakkar’s ‘Filmistan’ which won the National Award

‘Filmistan’ and the Power of Indian Cinema

What are man-made borders when people across enemy countries share a wonderful love for Hindi cinema? Songs, romance and filmi dialogues can unite them. ‘Filmistan’, the closing film at the recent New York Indian Film Festival encapsulates the power of cinema,  and not surprisingly,  has won India’s 2013 National Award for the Best Hindi Film.

It shows the  heart-warming way in which films can bind differing people together.

In his first feature film, Nitin Kakkar takes you into the world of the ebullient Sunny, who struggles as an assistant film director but longs to be a star in the fantasy world of Bollywood and for whom life is nothing but a filmi dialogue.

Having failed many acting auditions, he goes with an American crew into a remote area of Rajasthan as an assistant director. An Islamic terrorist group kidnaps him, mistaking him for an American crew member and holds him hostage in a small Pakistani village.

 A Love Affair with Pirated Bollywood Films

From there on the film is a laugh riot as his host,  a Pakistani who deals in pirated Hindi films and he, filmi aficionado extraordinaire,  forge a common bond against the grim terrorists. An overwhelming love of Hindi cinema, cricket and food brings warring people together, and reveals that at heart, they are not so different  Sharib Hashmi and Inaamulhaq are wonderful in the lead roles in this offbeat, lovable film which without  romance, item numbers  or box-office trappings, keeps you engrossed right till the end, and leaves you thinking.

Kakkar came to New York for the opening just after collecting the National Award. The film also received a Special Jury Mention at its World Premiere at the Busan International Film Festival and the Best Debut Director at the International Film Festival of Kerala and the Jaipur International Film Festival.

Cinema is the uniting force in ‘Filmistan’

Q and A with Nitin Kakkar, Director of ‘Filmistan’

The Absurdity of Drawing lines on Paper & Fighting Over Land

1. What did your parents tell you about the partition that influenced you the most?

     My grandfather was from Lahore – after Partition he went to Jullunder and then to Bombay. I’ve been hearing these stories from childhood. It’s not only my parents but a conversation with a lot of relatives, friends and the Punjabi community who had their home and life in Lahore. One day you are uprooted and told that this is not your home any more.  Not only that –  this is a different country altogether!  Then follows an insane bloodshed which scars the lives of friends and neighbors for years to come.  I cannot understand this absurdity. I find it very stupid,  drawing lines on paper and fighting over land. The worst is we continue to thrive on hatred, the  seeds of which were sown in 1947.

2. In ‘Filmistan’, Is Sunny based a bit on you in his passion for Bollywood and his beliefs about life?

Films do reflect the filmmaker. Yes, there is a big part of me in Sunny, especially the beliefs about life. However, unlike him, I am not a huge ‘Bollywood’ fan, even though I like Indian Cinema. I am more influenced by European cinema, Iranian cinema, and World Cinema.

Fighting the power of cinema in ‘Filmistan’

3. How does it feel to be the director in this first film and call the shots?

The director is the one who slogs the most – he’s just called the Boss! I think a film gets completed only when it meets the audience. The criteria was to make a good film – as a filmmaker I’m very proud to have made this film

 4. Do you think ‘Filmistan’ will be shown in Pakistan?

I really want this film to reach the common man in Pakistan. It is voice of a common man in India.  But this thought is not restricted to India-Pakistan Issue. It is relevant to all the countries which are divided into smaller parts. It is a human story. It is relevant every time a human stops being humane.

I want to take it to Pakistan and they would really love to have it released in Pakistan. Whichever way it travels there  - the focus is not only to make a film,  the focus is to make a difference – if even a few minds are changed, the purpose is solved,  I guess.

 5. In this 100th year of Indian cinema, what would you like to see happening with films and audiences?

I am proud to be a part of this cinematic heritage. I wish we continue making good films and evolve in the process. Cinema can influence minds and I hope the new filmmakers use it to voice their opinions and entertain the audience too. I hope the audience continues to support good cinema by going to the theater to watch the movies. Cinema is best experienced on a big screen – that is where the magic happens.

Riz Ahmed and Liev Schreiber in Reluctant Fundamentalist. Photo by Ishaan Nair. Copyright Reluctant Films II, Inc.

Meet Mira Nair’s Reluctant Fundamentalist

You’re in the comfortable upper middle-class home of Changez Khan’s parents in Lahore where a qawwalli concert is in full swing and the mesmerizing sounds of Sufi devotional music pervade the room. The camera zones in on the red paan-stained mouths of the performers, then cuts to the kidnapping of an American academic on the dark streets of Lahore, then back to the musical energy, the total civility of Urdu poetry in bloom. Paan stains and blood. Ethereal music, gun shots and screams. The crescendo rises and you are totally hooked.

Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a taut thriller, moving fast from the very first frame and carrying you along on the edge of your seat. Changez Khan, the  young protagonist, came to America from Pakistan, chasing the American Dream – an Ivy League education, a high-powered corporate job on Wall Street, and an American girl-friend.  9/11 changed all that. The downing of the twin towers transformed him into The Other, a man with a difficult name and a person of interest to the FBI. He is the man who is stopped at airports, strip-searched, who is asked “Have you ever been to Afghanistan?”

Sneak Peek at The Reluctant Fundamentalist

 Meeting The Other

Mohsin Hamid’s novel ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’ from which the movie is inspired, was an engrossing  read  - the entire book was in the form of  a monologue by Changez in an open air bazaar in Lahore, as he sits with an American reporter, talking about his life and changing values.

Transforming the monologue into a fast moving script peopled with many characters is the challenge for Hamid, William Wheeler and Ami Boghani. The screenplay puts on the lights, etches in the details and shows the love, families, dreams on the other side of the world, the world which exists outside America.

Nair’s accomplishment is that she has relentlessly followed The Other and filling in the blanks, given him a life and a past. Jumping between three continents and several cities, The Reluctant Fundamentalist populates the vacuum, the ignorance that exists in America about The Other, with real flesh and blood people and shows that if art, love, poetry and dreams exist in America, so do they exist in Pakistan. It is a very human tale, a look at the collateral damage that happens on both sides.

The action doesn’t let up and each character takes the story further until you realize where Changez  is coming from. Nair’s two great strengths are her empathy – and her ability to transform that instinct into powerful cinema. Her direction is taut, the editing is crisp and Declan Quinn’s camera catches the beauty of each place. Some of the exterior shots of NYC are breathtaking and you can understand how New York can overwhelm newcomers and become the center of their world.

Kate Hudson and Riz Ahmed in RF.Photo by Quantrell Colbert. Copyright Reluctant Films II, Inc.

(In an aside, one has to mention that this sleek, beautiful film was created on a budget and just as in the movie people are not who they seem to be, so too the locales have doubled up and are not what they seem. The pulsating city of Lahore, except for a few exterior shots, was largely created in Old Delhi; Atlanta doubled up in many shots for New York. The book had action taking place in Chile but Nair has taken it to Istanbul. The exterior shots were shot there but the perfect interiors were recreated in Delhi. Just shows how far resourceful thinking can take filmmakers.)

The soul of the movie is the amazing music – almost like oxygen in the film. From the first frame to the last, music is vital to  the film, adding to what you see and feel. Be it ancient qawallis, shairis, pop and funk, all of it melds together, setting the mood and pulling us into the lives of the characters.

(The music from the opening sequence has been generating lots of buzz. Here you can listen to Kangana, sung by Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad)

 Riz Ahmed is Changez Khan

No piece about The Reluctant Fundamentalist would be complete without mentioning the superb performance by Riz Ahmed, the British-Asian actor/rapper. He carries the movie on his shoulders and is almost in every frame of the film, embodying the role with an intelligence and sensitivity that is nuanced, showing the gradual awakening of Changez. Kate Hudson plays the psychologically fragile, hip artist Erica. Her past love is a ghostly presence in their lives and their confrontation at the art exhibition is a powerful scene.

Nair has a fine team of actors from all over including the flawless Liev Schreiber, Keifer Sutherland, Shabana Azmi and Om Puri, as well as Meesha Shafi from Pakistan. They give depth and flesh to their portrayals. A powerful scene is when father and son have a showdown during the sister’s wedding. In a few words the whole Asian concept of sharam – shame  and izzat  - honor is explored, concepts few Americans would have understood.

It is a coming of age story but also a story of how other people live and their dreams. Who’s a terrorist and who’s a freedom-fighter? Names, labels and identities pigeon-hole people and Nair tells the other side of the story.  ”I am a lover of America” says Changez Khan in the film – and you can believe him for ours is not a black or white world but one of many shades of gray, of many truths.

Mohsin Hamid, Kate Hudson, Mira Nair, Riz Ahmed & Aroon Shivdasani at the NY opening by IAAC. Photo:Sam Ahmed

Salman Rushdie & Deepa Mehta

Salman Rushdie &  Deepa Mehta  at the Met

‘Midnight’s Children’ – a major film collaboration born out of an epic book –   and film-goers are waiting in excited anticipation, popcorn and soda ready.  At a preview screening at the Metropolitan Museum of Art,  author Salman Rushdie and director Deepa Mehta were in a fun mood, completing each other’s sentences, putting a light-hearted spin on things,  and what came through clearly is the rapport they share.

Meanwhile,  I think I’ll entertain you all meanwhile with the goings on of that evening.

After screening ‘Midnight’s Children’ to a packed hall, they took to the stage with Navina Haidar, Curator of the Islamic Galleries at the Met, moderating the discussion. There’s an easy camaraderie between Salman Rushdie and Deepa Mehta and the whole evening had a smattering of wry humor to it. There were a lot of smiles, and spontaneous laughter from them – and the audience. Even away from his desk, Rushdie was spinning tales, and it was all quite charming.

Bringing a book to the big screen is always a challenge and it’s even more so when the book is ‘Midnight’s Children’ which has won many honors internationally, including the Booker of Bookers, and been the inspiration behind the work of a whole generation of Indian writers.

Midnight’s Children: The Journey

Asked about their collaboration, Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta said, “It’s been an amazing journey! I first met Salman when he came for the screening of our film ‘Water’ in New York  - I was terrified when I got to know that Salman Rushdie was in the audience! But lo and behold – he loved it.  He said he really liked it and I got a bit encouraged and I actually emailed him and asked him for a quote for the poster which he did – and it was wonderful. We became friends and started talking about working together.”

They met up on a free evening for dinner during Rushdie’s Toronto visit, and although she had first asked him about his novel ‘Shalimar the Clown’, before the evening was over, it was ‘Midnight’s Children’ and just as spontaneously, Rushdie said yes. “Then there was a tough negotiation,” he recalled. “They got the option to make the movie for a dollar for a year and a half- with the right to renew for another year, for a further dollar. And so this two dollar deal took us to where we are now – almost six years later from that moment. Neither of us planned it or thought about it at all until that instant.”

Rushdie added, “The thing I have responded to in Deepa was I could feel that her passion for the book was more than just her job, it was as if she had her own sense of feeling for the book and it meant a lot to her. My feeling is always to follow passion. I thought if she had that depth of feeling for the book, then she was obviously the right person to do it.”

Satya Bhabha & Shriya Saran

Rushdie the Scriptwriter

How did this come about?

Deepa Mehta said flatly, “He didn’t want to write the script.”

Responded Rushdie: “She made me do it – she made me do a lot of things! It’s true – I actually didn’t want to do it initially because I felt I’ve already done it. But then I changed my mind under pressure from the director here!  It’s the first of my books to be filmed – and it’s ‘Midnight’s Children’, which is an important book for me.  I would hate to walk away from it and come to the opening night and think ‘I don’t like that – that’s all wrong.’ I thought it would also be my fault if I stayed away from it. I should roll up my sleeves and be a part of it, be implicated in it.  And we both thought, maybe I was able to be more disrespectful to the book than anyone else.

Obviously the book is 600 pages and the screenplay is 120 pages and right there you can see this big issue. And somebody had to get hold of the  book and rip it to pieces and find the film inside it. I remember this wonderful line by Michelangelo. We are talking of sculpture where he said he always felt the figure was present inside the stone. He had to  take away everything that was not the figure, and what remained was the sculpture. I still have a bit of this feeling with this enormous – let’s call it raw material – book which sat there,  having to find the film inside it.  So I had to take away everything that was not the film until what was left was the film.”

Who Gets the Praise? The Blame?

“So if you didn’t like it – it’s his fault!’ said Deepa Mehta.

“Everybody knows that if the film is good, the director takes the credit and if it’s bad, it’s the writer’s fault!”  - Salman Rushdie

On Salman Rushdie’s Strong, Badass Women

“What attracted me to the book is the incredibly strong female characters – whether it’s the grandmother, the mother, aunts, Parvati the witch, Mrs. Gandhi, even Mary Pereira,” says Mehta. “These are extraordinary women who say extraordinary things. All my films have been about strong women characters so I’m sure that somehow informed the way I dealt with them.”

Rushdie said, referring to Navina Haidar. “By the way Navina and her family know something about this. Our families have been friends for many generations – and so when I say my grandmother was a very terrifying woman she knows what I’m talking about! She knows very well that the women in my family have been very formidable women in their many ways, through the generations. So for me it was much easier to write women like this. The other kind – the shrinking violet, shy retiring Indian woman which allegedly exists – I’ve  myself  never encountered her. I have spent my life with these very kind of badass women – so that’s the way it came out!”

Salman Rushdie’s Contribution to Indian Cinema:  “The Indirect Kiss”

“The indirect kiss here was one of my favorite bits!   I have to compliment you Salman for writing it and you Deepa, for executing it,” said Navina Haidar, about a scene in the movie. To that the unflappable Rushdie replied, ” I am very proud of the indirect kiss and I am very happy to see it come to life in the movie because I believe it to be my contribution to the Indian cinema, where people are not allowed to actually kiss.

There is a film inside my novel in which all the characters invent kissing where they kiss intermediate objects to express their passion- so to actually have it in the film I feel deeply satisfied – I think it’s erotic! I hope the Bombay movies will take notice of  it! ”

Midnight’s Children: Forrest Gump with Brown people?

As the film has not yet opened, very few American audiences have seen it. The film has been shown in a number of film festivals, and Rushdie remembers a funny moment at the Telluride Film Festival. “After this very first screening, as we came out, we heard people talking. One of them said, ‘You know, it’s like ‘Forrest Gump’ with brown people!’ I wanted to stop them and point out that our story was written before ‘Forrest Gump’  – so maybe ‘Forrest Gump’ was ‘Midnight’s Children’ with white people!”

Deepa Mehta – Only One Director at a Time

“The great thing about Salman is that he’s incredibly generous,” said Mehta. “There was no ego around,’ this is my work and my stamp has to be in it.’ He said,  ’Listen there’s only one director. Go and do it and if you need me, I’m here. That kind of trust was really wonderful.’

In dealing with her actors, Deepa Mehta used the teachings of the Natya Shastra, the 5000 years old Sanskrit text about drama and the 9 sets of emotions: “Using the Natya Shastra with my actors has been wonderful for me; we rehearsed intensively for three weeks.  When we were on set no actor ever said to me, ‘What’s my motivation?’ They knew who they were, what they were going towards and that they had spontaneity. I feel really blessed to have really good actors.”

Rushdie gave a big endorsement of Deepa Mehta’s directorial skills and the love the entire cast had for her. “Siddharth who plays Shiva is a huge star in the South but because he’s so handsome and charismatic he always gets to play the romantic lead – This was really casting him against type, asking him to play a much darker character. He just loved it. He loved having the opportunity to do that.”

He also gave the example of the lovely Shriya Saran who plays Parvati the Witch. Her beauty has always won her the leading lady roles but Deepa Mehta had cast her in a much more complex role:  ” Shriya would talk very movingly about how Deepa had seen something in her which she felt she hadn’t even seen in herself and allowed her to bring out of herself a performance that she didn’t  know she was capable of. That’s what Deepa does  - not to mention being a very good director with children.”

Anita Majumdar & Rahul Bose

Salman Rushdie’s Lunch with Priyanka Chopra

“Priyanka Chopra was here in New York and Deepa wasn’t,” goes another one of Rushdie’s tales.  Since they had been thinking of casting Priyanka in the film, Deepa asked Rushdie to have lunch with Priyanka.  Recalled Rushdie:  ”I said ‘Deepa, I have to have lunch with Priyanka? Tough – that’s a hardship!’”

“So yes, we had a very nice lunch in what conceived of  itself as an Indian restaurant – but none of  the waiters recognized Priyanka – which made me feel this is NOT an Indian restaurant! She was very friendly but she couldn’t do the film because she was very booked up. So I had some treats like that. It was sad not having her in the film – but at least I had lunch!”

Shabana Azmi and Seema Biswas

“The two people we had to have in the movie were Shabana Azmi as the grandmother and Seema Biswas as Mary,” said Rushdie.  ”We both felt there’s nobody else who could do this. They were the first two people we offered parts without casting anyone else – we had to have them and fortunately both said yes.”

Salman  Rushdie -  A New Career as an Actor?

Besides writing the screenplay, Rushdie is the narrator in ‘Midnight’s Children’. What’s next?

SR: She’s threatening to cast me in a movie as an actor!

DM: It’s a movie about gangsters – and Salman is making his debut as a gangster. I sent him the script and he said ‘Yes, I’ll do it.’

SR: I’ve always wanted to be a gangster! It’s a very funny script. It’s like Quentin Tarantino for Sikhs. I get to play Marlon Brando in a turban. Who could resist that? Acting will always be a little unscratched itch for me. So if I get a chance …

DM: You will, you will. You’re booked!

Later when I got a few moments with Salman Rushdie and Deepa Mehta, I remembered his love for old Indian cinema and all things cinematic. I asked him how he felt today, getting this close to the big screen?  He  said, ” I’ve always wanted to be an actor – so even though I didn’t get my face in this picture, I  got my voice in and that feels very exciting!”

Would we really see him acting in Deepa’s film? He certainly had the looks!

He laughed, “For a sardar gangster?”

Well, I said, there are some very handsome sardars!

“Oh thank you, thank you!” laughed Salman Rushdie and so ended the evening at the Met.

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Chatty Divas dish out on life and living

At 85, she smokes weed, writes, drives & disappears on solo vacations…

It’s taken a little while for me to get back to my original chatty form but here I am. Let’s just say, I was dealing with what they call the vagaries of life in not such a good way.  Anyway that’s not what I intend to write about. I would rather indulge in a bit of masala storytelling that India hides in its curves.

It was a working day when I met a person for a business meeting. But as it happens with meetings around here, we get to talk about much more interesting stuff than just the matter at hand. It used to be annoying at first but I seem to look forward to it now. While I give away guarded information about myself, I gratefully listen to every word that spills out from my company.

In this particular meeting, the “stream of conversation” had somehow reached the lawn where my colleague’s grandmother , Amma, sits all day smoking weed! She has a farmhouse and lives in a lavish set up with some 12 -1 5 rooms. She grows weed in her backyard, tends to it in the morning with immense love; orders her tea and carries it to the lawn where she smokes up some of her creation; puts on her thick rimmed glasses and controls her shaking hands till it settles on the page of her diary where she writes a new story every day! When I heard that, I knew immediately who I wanted to be when I “grew up”. I was in awe with just that line. I wanted to know everything!

A Life well lived – Photo by Marilena Benini

Diaries, an antique Ambassador car,  Celebrating Life

This grandmother has more feathers in her cap than one can imagine. Someone once told me that there is a car where everything opens but the door – it’s called an Ambassador! Amma is 85 and refuses to stop driving her antique Ambassador. And she does it with the kind of pizzazz that would make any other car manufacturer want to make her a brand ambassador of the model. But she doesn’t know that!

Her carefully guarded steel almirah is stacked with diaries of stories, a treasure for someone like me but these are to be cremated with her when she dies. She looks back at life and knows that everything we do in it are just to while away time while we wait for death to come, death only comes when you have suffered enough and paid for all the bad karma. If one is born, there is bound to be suffering that is the only way you pay for what you have reaped. In the meantime, she says, you build a fortune with your business, or slog at a job, or get married, have babies, get confused with love and people all just so you have enough to do while you wait for your time to end. Have fun while you are at it.

She has a boyfriend she relates to better than her husband. Her husband is still around and the three of them sit around at night and talk about old times. All in perfect harmony! And I cannot help but wonder where all this peace comes from? Is it a life well lived? I don’t think so. I imagine the lives of rich people to be full of trouble; sometimes guilt even. So where and how does this peace come from?

Private Journeys, Unknown Destinations

Every once in a while, without preamble,  Amma disappears! She buys a ticket to a destination and goes holidaying by herself. She leaves no note behind either and switches her phone off for the entire time she is away. This is a pattern with her which all in the family know not to meddle with. But now she is old and one never knows what might happen. She understands that and calls once every night to let her family know she is well. But nobody has the permission to ask her where she is or her plans of return. This is supposed to be her hideout time and she is going to have it no other way. This,  among many other interesting things is what she does to while away time.

There is no story in this post; just someone who has had a huge impact on me. Especially because I am in a country that is not known for people like her, stories like hers or lives like her. We are peeved with stories of rape that numb my soul for a while; but then I meet someone like Amma and something in me shifts. It gives me a reason to smile and something to look forward to in life or better still,  create it while I wait. Wait for it all to pass over.

Kriti Mukherjee

Check out Kriti’s site!

www.socialpotpourri.com

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Bandit Queen – The opera

Remembering The Bandit Queen

Phoolan Devi, India’s  notorious Bandit Queen, was gunned down at the age of 37  - yet she continues to live on in the popular imagination. Rape victim and avenging angel, oppressor and oppressed, she finally won respectability, embraced Buddhism, and a seat in Parliament before a barrage of bullets ended it all.

Vengeance. Rape. Murder. Bloodshed. Violence. Her short, chaotic  life was indeed the stuff of melodrama, and several artistic ventures have tried to capture its turbulence. One of the most successful was Shekhar Kapur’s memorable film ‘Bandit Queen’ which won international fame for both the director and for Seema Biswas’s powerful portrayal.

There is a continuing fascination with Phoolan Devi’s life, and in her latest avatar she is the central figure in an opera. ‘Phoolan Devi: The Bandit Queen’ is a multi-media chamber opera in the making, co-sponsored by the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC) and Da Capo Chamber Players. It is composed by Shirish Korde, has a libretto by Anushree Roy and is directed by Tom Diamond, with choreography by Nandini Sikand.

On a recent evening in Manhattan, Aroon Shivdasani, the Director of IAAC, had invited several New Yorkers to the Saffron Art Space to meet with the creative team behind the opera, over wine and cheese.

Amy Frawley, Shirish Korde, Aroon Shivdasani, Donia Salem, Patricia Spencer and Nandini Sikand

Phoolan Devi: Child Bride, Abused, Gang-Raped, turns Bandit Queen

“Phoolan Devi was born in abject poverty, she was sold as a child bride, was abused, gang raped, victimized and finally abducted by bandits and became a bandit queen herself,” said Shivdasani.  ”She saw herself as a Robin Hood – as a Durga – her life was violent, not necessarily out of  choice but so much violence was done to her that she herself got the thirst for violence.”

Shirish Korde, a noted composer, spent his early years in East Africa so was already familiar with Indian and African music before studying Western music in the US, and is currently a Professor of Music at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA. He has several operatic works to his credit,  including ‘Chitra’ and ‘Rasa’, in which he combines Indian instruments with Western orchestral music.

Korde, who has received several arts grants, is working on various projects including a new song cycle, KA, for the Boston Musica Viva, a work for cello and voice – Anusvara, Fifith Prism for the cellist Jan Müller-Szerwas and Deepti Navaratna, soprano. His guitar concerto Nada Ananda was recently released on CD.

Bandit Queen – the opera

Violence, Retribution, Transformation, Myth, Class…

The Bandit Queen has been on his mind for several years. “The themes in her life : violence, retribution, transformation, myth, class were all fascinating…in fact,  ideal dramatic material for an opera,” he says. “Phoolan Devi’s story raises difficult and universal questions about violence and women. I felt that no single vocal style – opera, jazz, etc. – could accurately represent her complex character,” he says.  So the music draws from many cultures and embraces opera, classical music, jazz, hip hop, folk music from Rajasthan and Vedic chants. The spoken word includes poems by Pablo Neruda, the Iraqi poet Rabia and the Pakistani poet Faiz.

Indeed, the cast is a mix of West and East and from Canada and the US. The Toronto-based soprano Zorana Sadiq, who is a Pakistani-Canadian,  plays Phoolan Devi. “What’s beautiful about her voice is that she can cross over into jazz, into Carnatic music or popular music,” says Korde. Sadiq has won high praise in the role of Phoolan Devi in a staged performance in Boston and has also played  Margaret Trudeau in Trudeau: Long Path, Shining March for the World Stage Festival, Laurette in Opera New York’s Gianni Schicchi, and Ariane in R. Murray Schafer’s opera The Enchanted Forest, among others.

“Musically, singing the role of the Phoolan Devi is quite challenging,” said Zorana Sadiq from Ontario. ” Shirish’s compositional style requires that I sing a large range of vocal styles, from Western Classical to the Carnatic to the ghazals of Pakistan.  As I prepare for this, I must be flexible with all of these very different styles of vocalization.”

Bandit Queen – the opera

Who was Phoolan Devi – Victim or Avenging Angel?

Dance is an integral visual part of telling the Bandit Queen’s story in this opera and choreographer Nandini Sikand uses Odissi dance as a basic vocabulary. A filmmaker, Odissi dancer and anthropologist,  Sikand is an Assistant Professor in the media studies program at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. She has her own neo-classical Odissi dance company, and typically collaborates with various dancers. Donia Salem and she are co-choreographing and will be auditioning dancers, male and female,  trained in martial arts and modern dance as they move further in the process.

For  Sikand, the question is “Who was Phoolan Devi – victim or avenging Durga?” Through dance, the opera explores the larger aspect of divinity, what it means to feel forsaken and the fact that devotion can come from a place of strength. In this choreography the goddesses Durga, Kali and Bhairavi change qualities and countenance, as Phoolan Devi’s life unfolds.

There have been several workshops of the opera, the last one being a staged workshop in Boston. Korde says that this procedure is natural in the creation of operas.  ”Operas are major artistic endeavors and by nature collaborative, with music and sung and spoken texts, with dance, movement, sets, lighting, video and costumes,” he says. “It takes a lot of work to get all the elements right…so it is customary for operas to have at least one or two workshops, unstaged and staged productions before the full production is premiered.”

(C) Lavina Melwani

This article first appeared in The Hindu 

An enigma- caught Between Two Worlds
Photo Credit: Varun Suresh

Single Desi – Caught Between Two Worlds

“Champions Keep Playing Until they get it Right”- Billie Jean King

Being first generation isn’t easy for anyone.  However, once you finish the first 30 years, you begin to understand life a little bit more.  Being in my mid-thirties, I am able to pass on some wisdom that might help other first generation desis on their life journey.

22 Tips to a More Productive Lifestyle

1. Health is EVERYTHING.  If you don’t have health, life can be a struggle.

2. Concentrate on being an individual, not collectively a South Asian group.  You will find a partner if someone likes WHO you are.   Focusing on being like everyone else is pointless because as people age, life diversifies and everyone goes in different directions.  Also, why would you want to be like everyone else, when God entrusted you with your own special gifts and talents?

3.  It doesn’t matter what anyone thinks of you.  People aren’t God, so they have no right to judge you.  Chances are if people are judging you, it is because they are uncomfortable with who they are.

4.  Just relax and enjoy the journey a little bit more.

5. Get creative:  Creativity is the key to leading a fulfilling life.  Develop lots of interests and enjoy

6. One of things I enjoyed most about my life is I got to do things that I enjoyed doing.  Do the things that you love to do.

7. Traveling is awesome.

8. Don’t let limited people intimidate you.

9. Don’t let anyone hurt you.  At the end of the day, you have to move on and be the best you that you can be.

10. If you spend countless hours trying to meet the wrong person, you won’t be fresh when the right person comes along.  Focus on being happy and taking care of yourself and everything else falls into place.

11.  Everyone needs something  (or someone) to make them feel validated and worthwhile.

12. There are so many different Indians out there.  You don’t have to be the same as everyone else.

13. Keep moving, even when it seems pointless.

14. Organic Coconut Oil is good for your hair and skin.

15. Every first generation Indian has a different life plan.

16. Life is nothing but a series of cycles.

17. Everyone needs updating at least once in their life (Zerona, invisilign, Zeltiq etc, etc…)

18. Drink lots of water.  It washes out the toxins and cleans your digestive system.

19. God really does have a plan.

20. Don’t let anyone stop you from achieving your best.

21. This too shall pass.

22. Don’t lose interest in yourself at ANY point in your life.

xoxo

Monica Marwah

Monica Marwah

Monica Marwah is a 30-something single school psychologist who enjoys living life to the fullest.  She is taking her experience and showing others how to believe in themselves and love themselves completely.  After years of dating and meeting people, she has come into her own.  Spirituality has been a foundation for self improvement for her and she is hoping to encourage people to embark upon a spiritual journey at this age.)

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Related Posts:

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To Mothers everywhere – a love poem in colors by a young artist

Mothers, Sons and Daughters…

To all the wonderful moms – Happy Mother’s Day! As this young artist has depicted from the heart, may the flowers always bloom for you, the sun shine on you and your lives always be full of love. Roses, gifts, visits to the spa, jeweled baubles, lunches and dinners, lots of pampering – you deserve them all!

Yet today we pay tribute also to the other mothers – the invisible women all over the world who struggle to give their children a roof and sustenance, a future…Watch Breakthrough’s moving video about the nameless women whose lives get subsumed in making a livable life for their families.

Breakthrough’s Right Reporters video ‘What’s in a Name?’

Breakthrough is a global human rights organization that uses the power of media, pop culture, and community mobilization to inspire people to take action for dignity, equality, and justice. It aims to uplift women, their identities and their stories and on Mother’s Day the organization shares a video from Rights Reporters, Breakthrough’s reporting team in India which serves as a platform for communities to tell their ordinary yet extraordinary stories of struggle and survival – and often triumph.

Breakthrough honors and celebrates the lives of these women, and you can learn more about the Bell Bajao campaign and other initiatives at Breakthrough.TV

Meanwhile, enjoy the red hearts oozing glue, the burnt toast made by little hands, the wonderful art and the overflow of hugs and kisses. Memories are made of this!

What are your favorite memories of your mother? The special times you’ve spent with your sons and daughters?
Your thoughts on the mothers and children who have to struggle to create a life? Please share.

Guest Blogger: Sanjay Sanghoee

Looking for the real India –
Photo Credit: nandadevieast via Compfight cc

India: Naked Children, Cows & Bollywood Starlets?

Being Indian-American, I have gotten used to the clichéd depiction of my motherland as a nation of naked children running in the streets, cows, the ubiquitous smell of curry, and dancing Bollywood starlets.  Most of the time I shrug it off, but lately it has been hard to ignore the lopsidedness of the American media in their portrayal of India.

The latest salvo, of course, has come in the wake of the Delhi rape scandal, and has tarnished the reputation of the country immeasurably.  Not that rape and women’s rights are not real problems in India, but the persecution of an entire nation and culture is unjustified.  After all, we are still talking about a nation with thousands of years of rich history and advancement behind it and a cultural pedigree that frankly far outpaces that of America; not Iran or some tribal village in Afghanistan where they still use the abacus and stone women for adultery.  We are also talking about a nation with more than a billion people and very complex sectarian, cultural, religious, and economic dynamics that don’t lend themselves to black-and-white characterization or blanket judgment.

But those nuances are lost on the American media, which for some reason loves whipping India and painting it as a stone age nation over any issue that it can find.  From the slick but ultimately shallow Slumdog Millionaire (yes, I know Danny Boyle is English, but the movie was made to appeal to American tastes). It seemed to take perverse pleasure in highlighting India’s negatives while ignoring the considerable economic and social development in the country over the past few decades, not to mention the very real work being done by activists in the country to address poverty, police abuse, political corruption, and other ills. There have been round upon round of scathing editorials by American and Indian-American writers holding “all Indian men” responsible for the abuses of the few and belittling our entire culture over specific incidents, there has been an onslaught of bias and distortion.

The many faces of India -Photo Credit: Ravages via Compfight cc

India Negatives: Masala or Fact?

Well, here’s the thing.  Crippling poverty is an abomination, especially for a civilized country in the 21^st century, corruption is a scourge on our society, and rape is a matter of national shame, but all these things exist everywhere in the world, including in America, and to single out India as being some type of unique culprit on these fronts is deliberately misleading and extremely damaging.

There are two very telling statistics to consider here:

1. The poverty rate in the US is more than 16% (including 20% of children) but has been rising for several years.  The poverty rate in India is more than 30% but has actually been falling in the last few years.  That does not mean that poverty is not an urgent concern for India but it is clearly one that is being met more effectively in that nation than in America!
2. The number of reported rapes in India is about 22,000 per year which translates into 0.002% of India’s population.  Compare this to the US, where 85,000 rapes are reported, and which is 0.03% of the population.  Of course, we all know that many more rapes go unreported and that sexual assault in all its forms is much larger in scope, but the fact that the likely incidence of rape in America is 10 times that in India speaks volumes about the bias in reporting.

What this means is that while India’s problems are real and serious, the doomsday scenarios painted by the press are more “masala” than fact.

  If the Delhi rape was a function of Indian culture, then what does the Ohio rape say about American culture?

If the American media wants to be fair, then it should also acknowledge the extent of problems right here and examine the influence of our own attitudes and culture on those problems.  If the Delhi rape was a function of Indian culture, then what does the Ohio rape say about American culture?  If the number of violent crimes in India is high, do we want to count the number of gun homicides in Chicago?  If the slums of India are a national disgrace, then what do the projects in the Bronx say about our urban decay?  If child abuse is only widespread in India, then how come therapists in America have a thriving business helping people get over childhood sexual trauma?

If the American media is truly outraged by the situation in India and thinks that it is necessary for Indians to march on their government, then it should also be outraged by the situation in the US and agitate for similar marches on Washington, DC

My point is that if journalists, editorialists, authors, or filmmakers (regardless of nationality) are going to point fingers, the first one should be pointed back at themselves.  Hypocrisy and biased views do not solve problems; they only exacerbate them.   If India’s challenges are going to be met, then those analyzing them should get their hands dirty, understand the complex dynamics of the society and then suggest smart solutions instead of ranting against an entire nation or an entire gender.

Sanjay Sanghoee

SANJAY SANGHOEE is a political and business commentator.  His blogs appear in Huffington Post, FORTUNE, and other publications.  He has worked at leading investment banks as well as at a multi-billion dollar hedge fund. He has an MBA from Columbia Business School and is the author of the financial thriller “Merger” (available on Amazon) which Chicago Tribune called “Timely, Gripping, and Original”.  Please visit his website www.sanghoee.com and follow him on Twitter @sanghoee

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Tina & Tarz – When life becomes a reality show

It’s All About Relationships

When Tina & Tarz Got Married

“Shine Bright like a Diamond”

-Rihanna

Tina Sugandh’s beauty and vocal tone are uplifting and inspiring.  Her glitz and sparkle can really provide a visual that stuns and energizes a crowd. Her music is out of this world and definitely worth a listen.  She is just one of those artistes that you can put on in the car and lose yourself in the music while you are driving on the highway.

Imagine my delight when I heard that Tina was going to be on a new reality series on Bravo TV, “Newlyweds: The First Year”.  I absolutely could not believe it – the premiere of her new show could not come fast enough.  I haven’t been this excited about a newlyweds show since the premiere of Nick and Jess in 2003.

For those of you that don’t know Tina, she is a Mumbai born native of New Jersey.  When her older sister Seema got married, Tina and her parents picked up their things and moved to Los Angeles.  The home of the LA Dodgers.

On Monday, May 6^th at 10 pm Bravo is following four couples on camera for an entire year, documenting intimate moments in their first year of marriage.

The paths of the four couples never cross, however viewers will watch as the couples are put through tests of strength in their marriage.  Issues include fertility struggles, merging finances, major cultural differences and family drama.  Whose love do you think will survive?

I think it is awesome that Tina and her husband Tarz are contenders in this reality show.  It will let the viewer in on things we don’t normally have access to via Facebook or real life.

Bravo TV has the following description about Tina Sugandh and Tarz Ludwigsen for the reality show:

Tina is an Indian international pop star who has recorded with everyonefrom Timbaland to Ringo Starr and performed at the “Indian Grammy Awards.” Tarz, a former model turned “tech geek,” ispresident/co-founder of a start-up web company, Pandoodle. Between Tina’s rising success in music and Tarz’s focus on his business, thecouple has struggled to find time together over the years. They hopegetting married will change that, but find it may be easier said thandone. Sex is a stressful issue due to Tarz’s long work days and the pressure of trying to make a baby. With Tarz constantly bumping heads with Tina’s traditional father, family problems also contribute to their marriage.

Check out my super fabulous interview with the sassy and sophisticated Tina Sugandh:

 How did you first get into performing?

I started performing when I was just five years old with my family, the Sugandh Family! My mom, dad, sister, Seema, and I all sang in seven different languages and played instruments and my dad is also a hysterical mimic, comic, and MC. My parents worked at their full-time jobs during the week, and my sister and I studied very hard in school, and then every weekend we would all take off and have this magical family-bonding Bollywood weekend! After graduating with a Dean’s List Biology degree, I got my first record deal. That led to my songs being on soundtracks such as Around the World in 80 Days, Christmas with the Kranks, Ice Princess, Raise Your Voice, and The Clique, as well as singing the theme song for Kelly Ripa’s ABC sitcom “Hope and Faith”, and my songs on the Billboard Charts, etc.

It’s definitely been a long road with many ups and downs, but I’ve recently had many unreal experiences that I’m very grateful for such as singing and playing on Ringo Starr’s album, and then going to Ringo’s again for a family thank-you lunch-which was home-cooked Indian food by the way! There is actually footage of Ringo being incredibly funny as I show him what the Indian drum“tabla” is all about on my youtube site.

Your mother was a huge inspiration to you; unfortunately she lost her battle with breast cancer.  How did she influence you and what is your fondest memory of her?

My mom was the center of my universe. Rather than being angry and bitter though, I’m just grateful for every single second that I got to be around her. I would say the most obvious influence she’s had on me is “music” as she had the voice of an angel, and she is the reason “The Sugandh Family” toured our whole lives. I would say the most important life-lesson she left me with was to simply be positive and happy, and to see the good-and only the good-in everything and everyone. She was always smiling, singing, laughing, dancing-even when she was losing her battle with cancer. Remaining positive through something like that speak volumes, as it makes all our other problems and issues seem trivial. My fondest memory is just laying in bed with her and gabbing the night away. She was truly my best friend.

Tina and Tarz get married

How did you and Tarz meet?

There is actually a fun video that Bravo shot of us about how we met! àhttp://bit.ly/ZF4vjO We basically met through my older cousin, who used to work with Tarz. He used to tease her and say that he really wanted to meet that “hot” Tina-cousin of hers from the music videos, (though he really had zero interest in me but just enjoyed playfully teasing and annoying her). She was not worried about introducing us, since she knew I was only interested in marrying an Indian (since I figured no non-Indian would put up with my daily Bollywood music and my Indian food and my addiction to Bollywood movies and all that!) So, she brought him to a party that I had when I got signed to Sony music. That night, Tarz says we had a deep and meaningful conversation, but all I remember is putting my hand on his pecs as I was talking to him and thinking “wow, these are some amazing pecs”. I mean, it was my Sony record deal party so naturally, I was wasted! Lol! Anyway, we ended up talking after that night and our instant chemistry was the most perfect and unbelievable thing I’ve ever experienced. I actually moved in with him on the first date which was completely the opposite of anything I’d ever dreamed I would do, and we had our Indian religious ceremony pretty much right away-which was over five years ago now in January of 2008. I thank god we had that ceremony right away because my precious, angelic mom, (who danced away like crazy that day in Jan ’08), tragically passed away later that year.

What attracted you about Tarz?

I guess what attracted me initially to him was that we were just incredibly similar as far as our sense of humor, family values, outlook on life, ambitions and goals, and so much more. It was so easy and so much fun to just be totallyme around him. He’s not the type to be a macho douche of a guy and play games and all that BS. He’s just very real, and that was very attractive to me!

Tina Sugandh on her wedding day

What was the first thing that went through your mind after meeting Tarz?

Honestly, when I first met Tarz, I did that thing that you’re not supposed to do as far as judging a book by it’s cover. I figured from the way he looked that he was just some dumb surfer dude, since that’s what he looks like! Lol! I learned my lesson though since his looks are the least impressive part of him by far. He is just incredibly kind, with a beautiful heart, an extremely intelligent mind, ridiculously hard-working and ambitious-and superficial “looks” actually mean nothing to him. He sees “looks” as fleeting and unimportant, and understands that it truly is all about the inside. The great thing about that for me is that I never have to worry about him thinking I will be any less beautiful if I get in a car accident or become ill. The bad thing about that is that when I get all glammed up for events, I look no different to him then when I wake up in the morning!

Why do you think so many people are obsessed with watching the intimate parts of people’s marriages played out on TV?

We are all so different in this world, so I’m sure there are all different reasons that people are now obsessed with reality TV!I’m sure some people are sadly just bored and unhappy with the day-to-day monotony of life, while others simply find it entertaining to watch how the “crazies” of the world behave. (I guess I just indirectly referred to myself as a “crazie”. Lol). Some probably feel better about their own lives by watching these shows since so many of them include “train-wreck” moments, and then there is that whole voyeurism aspect. Or maybe it’s as simple as there’s a person on the show they think is hot. I’m not quite sure why reality TV shows in general have taken over the world though as it’s insane to me! Although, I probably shouldn’t say that considering I’m starring in one! Lol.

Were you and Tarz nervous about going on a network like BravoTV, as it has a reputation of causing problems in people’s personal lives?  For example look at the Real Housewives Franchise.  The producers are constantly starting up trouble for ratings.  Heartache=Rating Gold.  How do you feel about your relationship being tested?  How do you think you will survive the constant media scrutiny?

Thanks to Tarz, this is honestly the first time in my entire life that I am at a place where I don’t care what people think of me. I still have insecurities and I am nowhere near perfect, but Tarz has taught me that no one else’s opinion of me matters besides those that truly know who I am, such as my family. Being around Tarz’s “life is short so don’t let anything bring you down” mentality gave me the courage and security to be on this Bravo show, as I’m sure there will be quite a bit of smack talk! We’ve had a year filled with some really tough and tragic moments, which I’m guessing will translate into tons of drama and insane moments on the show-which means those haters will have plenty to feed off of!

A lot more footage is taped than viewers actually see.  Are you concerned about being unfairly judged or scrutinized?  How do you explain what goes on behind the scenes to viewers who are strongly opinionated.

So true! We filmed for a little bit over a year, and they somehow magically smashed that all into 8 episodes! It is seriously unreal! Anyway, I think being unfairly judged, scrutinized, and misunderstood is just part of being on a show where you put it all out there. Tarz has been such a blessing in my life for teaching me not to care what people think. Whether you are on a reality show or not, you can never please everyone so why try? Just be the best version of yourself that you can be, and feel sorry for insecure haters that will smack talk and try to bring you down. In fact, now days, when I get smack-talked, my first instinct is “poor unhappy insecure person that has to put me down in order to feel better about themselves…I just want to give them a hug”. That was not the case before I met Tarz, where I just wanted to punch these peoples’ lights out! Lol!

Do you have any regrets about doing this reality show?  Would you do it again, if asked?

I have no idea what to expect as I haven’t seen the episodes yet! I can say that Tarz and I had a pretty insane year with some very dramatic and tragic moments though, so that may be tough to watch for me. Overall, the crew was absolutely incredible, and the producer, Lauren Lazin, was an absolute dream, so yeah sure! I would do it again! As far as regrets in general, if I had a time-traveling machine that could fix things I may have regrets about life choices I’ve made in the past. But what’s done is done, and so the only choice we have is to better ourselves from our past mistakes! Was this show a mistake? I guess I’ll have to watch and see!

What advice do you have for single women who are struggling to find dates?

Ok, so dating around sucks. I hated it, and Tarz hated it. But if you have a long-term relationship in mind, my advice would be, do the work, go on those dates, and do not settle for mediocrity! Some lucky people may find their true love right away, but I’m thinking most, such as myself, just need to stick it out until they meet “the one”. I’ve dated a few different types with the hope that it would turn into marriage-only to find that either our ambitions didn’t match up, or after the attraction died down we didn’t have that “best friend” chemistry (that I personally believe is the key to longevity), and I even dated one that was a pathological liar! Yeah, I’ve paid my dues! Lol! It was scary to not find “the one” because I was getting older and older! But honestly, this is the rest of your life and I thank the stars literally ever day that I waited and found Tarz.So my personal suggestion is to find your best friend. I personally do not believe in mediocrity, and I need to be “head over heels” happy on a daily basis, and who you marry can really make or break you!

xoxo

Monica Marwah

(Monica Marwah is a 30-something single school psychologist who enjoys living life to the fullest.  She is taking her experience and showing others how to believe in themselves and love themselves completely.  After years of dating and meeting people, she has come into her own.  Spirituality has been a foundation for self improvement for her and she is hoping to encourage people to embark upon a spiritual journey at this age.)

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Related Posts:

Straight Talk from the Single Desi
Desi Dilemma- Pros and cons of the Single Life
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Lavina’s Picks

Today I’m inviting you to a new  feature on Lassi with Lavina – Lavina’s Picks! Hop into my yellow and black taxi cab as we cruise the web and find the most meaningful, fun, silly, provocative or useful articles from the globe! So click and come along for the ride!

A ride on the web for Lavina’s Picks!

Here’s a taste:

Can you Divorce Your Wife on Skype?

“If online nikah gained popularity in the Muslim community, could e-talaq be far behind?”  A look at this new and easy way to get rid of your spouse and whether it’s legal. It is causing heartache in some NRI marriages too. It’s happening via SMS and video chats too!

http://bit.ly/16FF07m

 Fashion’s Heroes in Bangladesh

Want to dress well but be ethically just? With all that’s happened in Bangladesh, there’s a bad taste in the mouth about fashion’s whimsy. Here are 9 apparel brands which give you cutting edge fashion and make sure the workers in Bangladesh get a fair deal.  Heard of Bhalo, Bachhara, Trash to Trend, Karo, Tulsi & Global Girlfriend?

http://bit.ly/18cK1li

Bombay Talkies  at Cannes

“I was really angered by a blog that appeared on a website called the First Post. The blogger questioned the depiction of the homosexual character and why he had to be the home breaker who bit the hand that fed him,” says Karan Johar in this article about reactions to ‘Bombay Talkies’ which is premiering at Cannes. Hear the reactions of Anurag Kashyap, Dipakar Banerjee, Karan Johar and Zoya Akthar to what the critics have said about their work in this new movie celebrating the Indian film industry’s 100th year

http://bit.ly/10Gnz1V

Tamarind Spiced Cashews from NYT

Who doesn’t love the combination of tamarind and roasted cashew nuts and garam masala and cayenne pepper? Especially if it all adds up to a quickie snack to have with cocktails! A fun  video from NYT’s  Melissa Clark on how to put together these fabulous Tamarind Spiced Nuts with mint in 20 minutes! Yum!

http://nyti.ms/18cMYSN