Cinema India! Presents Showcase 2004
The Changing Face of Indian Cinema
to debut at Asia Society
725 Park Avenue at 70th Street, New York City
Explore Bollywood and beyond with new Indian films and a TimesTalks
April 16 and 17
Asia Society, the American Museum of the Moving Image (Moving Image) and Cinema India! present Showcase 2004 - a six-film showcase featuring the best of Bollywood and beyond. The film series opens on Friday, April 16 with a premiere special event and film at Asia Society and Museum, followed by a TimesTalk on April 17 and additional screenings.
The Indian film industry is famous throughout the world for its lavish musical spectacles and epic love stories. With a following of 350 million people worldwide, Bollywood is easily the largest film industry in the world. The splendor and energy of the famous “Bollywood” style has inspired everything from movies like Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge to French fashion and American hip-hop.
The first series of its kind, the Cinema India! Showcase 2004 will travel to nine U.S. cities and play at ten venues from April to August as part of a national tour. The program has been carefully curated from hundreds of mainstream Indian hits and top international film festivals to highlight both new trends and contemporary classics. The program is curated by Radha Welt Vatsal and sponsored by The New York Times and India Abroad. Merrill Lynch is hosting the opening reception and is a participating sponsor of Cinema India! Showcase 2004. "The Indian film industry is an important part of the culture and heritage of India, and Merrill Lynch is proud to support this landmark festival showcasing the best of Bollywood and the diverse facets of Indian life," said Jyoti Chopra, Director, South Asian Business Development at Merrill Lynch.
On April 17 filmmakers Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding), Shashanka Ghosh (Waisa Bhi Hota Hai/Anything Can Happen), Vishal Bharadwaj (Maqbool), actress Kirron Kher (Bariwali/The Lady of the House), and curator, Radha Welt Vatsal will discuss recent developments in the Indian film industry and its impact worldwide with Greg Winter of the New York Times. The program will be introduced by Prem Panicker from India Abroad. This TimesTalks program is presented by The New York Times Community Affairs Department, India Abroad, Air India, Asia Society, Moving Image, and Cinema India.
Schedule of Screenings and TimesTalks at Asia Society and Museum
725 Park Avenue at 70th Street, New York City
For tickets and information call (212) 517-ASIA or www.AsiaSociety.org
Bariwali/The Lady of the House (Rituparno Ghosh/1999/150 min./35 mm)
Friday, April 16 · 7:30 pm (Reception at 6:30 pm)
A lonely middle-aged spinster, Banolata (Kirron Kher), is forced by circumstances to rent her family’s sprawling home to a film crew, with devastating consequences. Compared to Satyajit Ray’s Charulata and The Music Room, this award-winning art film was a favorite on the international film festival circuit. Introduction by Producer, Anupam Kher. This film is a New York premiere. In Bengali with English subtitles. (Screening repeats at Moving Image on Friday, June 25 · 7:30 pm)
Admission: $5 students; $7 members; $10 nonmembers
TimesTalks
Bollywood and Beyond: Indian Cinema at Home and Abroad
Saturday, April 17 · 12:00 noon
Filmmakers Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding), Shashanka Ghosh (Waisa Bhi Hota Hai/Anything Can Happen), Vishal Bharadwaj (Maqbool), actress Kirron Kher (Bariwali/The Lady of the House), and curator, Radha Welt Vatsal discuss recent developments in the Indian film industry and its impact worldwide with Greg Winter of the New York Times. Program introduced by Prem Panicker, India Abroad.
Admission: $5 students; $7 members; $10 nonmembers
Waisa Bhi Hota Hai/Anything Can Happen (Shashanka Ghosh/2003/138 min./35mm)
Saturday, April 17 · 2:30 pm
Puneet (Arshad Warsi) is an advertising copywriter, who ends up saving a hit man’s life and ultimately causing the downfall of Bombay’s top two gang lords. With a slew of idiosyncratic characters and subplots, Ghosh’s first feature is a contemporary blend of Indian and Western commercial genres, including noir, gangster and comedy. Ghosh, who helped launched MTV and Channel V in India, created the iconic characters Udham Singh and Quick Gun Murugan. This film is a New York premiere. In Hindi with English subtitles. (Screening repeats at Moving Image on Friday, June 18 · 7:30 pm.)
Admission: $5 students; $7 members; $10 nonmembers
Kandukondain, Kandukondain/I Have Found It (Rajiv Menon/2000/150 min./35mm)
Saturday, April 17 · 5:30 pm
Featuring Bollywood superstar Aishwarya Rai and India’s “indie” idol Tabu, this adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility set in contemporary South India is a delightful primer on the conventions of classic Indian commercial cinema. The film retells the story of two attractive sisters and their three beaus: an aspiring filmmaker educated in New York City, an injured soldier and a stock market whiz-kid. With music by A.R. Rahman (Bombay Dreams), the spectacular song sequences move from Tamil Nadu to Egypt and Scotland. In Tamil with English subtitles. (Screening repeats at Moving Image on Friday, May 28 · 7:30 pm.)
Admission: $5 students; $7 members; $10 nonmembers
Schedule of Screenings at the American Museum of the Moving Image
35th Avenue at 36th Street, Astoria, Queens
For tickets and further information, visit www.MovingImage.us or 718-784-0077
Maqbool (Vishal Bharadwaj/2003/132 min./35mm)
Friday, April 23 · 7:30 pm
A moody urban drama Bollywood-style, this adaptation of Macbeth is set in the underworld of contemporary Bombay, starring Irfan Khan as Maqbool, the loyal second in command; Pankaj Kapoor as Abbaji, head of the crime gang; and the sultry Tabu as an aging gangster’s beautiful, young and scheming mistress. Naseeruddin Shah and Om Puri add to this thrilling mix as corrupt fortune-telling policemen. A New York premiere. In Hindi with English subtitles.
The Speaking Hand: Zakir Hussain and the Art of the Indian Drum (Sumantra Ghosal /2003/104 min./35mm.)
Friday, April 30 · 7:30 pm
Shown in two parts, this compelling documentary charts the life and work of Ustad Zakir Hussain, India’s leading tabla (drum) player. The film includes mesmerizing concert footage from performances with Mickey Hart and Planet Drum, his father Ustad Alla Rakha (tabla), Ravi Shankar (sitar), Birju Maharaj (kathak – dance) and Hariprasad Chaurasia (flute). A must-see for fans of Hussain and Indian classical music. In English and Hindi, with English subtitles.
Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge/The Braveheart Will Take the Bride (Aditya Chopra/1995/189 min./35mm)
Friday, May 14 · 7:30 pm
The longest-running film in the history of Indian cinema (426 weeks and still playing!), this trend-setting film was one of the first to deal with the lives of Indians living abroad and changed the face of Bollywood. Featuring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in a traditional love story, jetting between London, Europe and India. In Hindi with English subtitles.
Kandukondain, Kandukondain/I Have Found It (Rajiv Menon/2000/150 min./35mm)
Friday, May 28 · 7:30 pm
See above for description
Waisa Bhi Hota Hai/Anything Can Happen (Shashanka Ghosh/2003/138 min./35mm)
Friday, June 18 · 7:30 pm
See above for description
Bariwali/The Lady of the House (Rituparno Ghosh/1999/150 min./35 mm)
Friday, June 25 · 7:30 pm
See above for description
Members of the press interested in attending the films should contact the Asia Society Public Relations department at (212) 327-9271 or email pr@asiasoc.org. Screeners and high-resolution images are available on request, and the filmmakers will be available for interviews.