Niagara Falls in winter
This weekend I am in Niagara Falls on a Jaunt. Whenever I travel in India, and tell people I’m from Canada, I often hear, “Oh, I would love to go to Niagara Falls!” It’s always been a bit strange to me, as I grew up within driving distance of “the Falls” and never took them all that seriously. When I was in high school, we used to drive to Niagara Falls in the middle of the night for a lark. We thought the place was silly. So to hear people in a far-off country — a country that I always deemed to be the height of “exotic” — say they long to visit Niagara Falls seemed bizarre. But of course perspective is everything. (more…)
Deepa Mehta at the University of Toronto, photo by Katie Billo
There was a moment during acclaimed Indo-Canadian director Deepa Mehta’s talk recently at the University of Toronto — about the making of her new film Midnight’s Children — when I felt the jolt of inspiration. It came near the end. Someone asked if “it’s easier to break into film today, or when you got started.” Deepa replied very thoughtfully in a deeply felt, lyrical voice: “I think it’s really difficult making films. The challenge has not diminished or increased. Whenever you want to write a book, whenever you want to make a film, whenever you want to make a painting — whenever you do something that isn’t about going to an office, whenever your future is not secured by a paycheque, it’s a risky thing. Whenever you take a risk it’s going to be tough.” (more…)
Shahrukh Khan and me dancing on stage at RaOne premiere in Toronto. Photo by Andrew Adams of Katha Images.
Yet again, I found myself in the eye of the Shahrukh Khan storm when he was here in Toronto for the opening of his new film, RaOne, at the TIFF Bell Lightbox. If you follow my blog, you will know that I wrote Shahrukh Khan and me about my love for his film Paheli and my thwarted chances to meet him; and you will remember that I finally did meet him during the IIFA Awards, which I wrote about in Bollywood in Toronto: Fave moment #1 – Meeting Shahrukh Khan. (more…)
George Harrison and Ravi Shankar
Last night I saw Martin Scorsese’s documentary, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, which has just been released. It’s an interesting time to showcase the idealistic and spiritually inclined Beatle, given the global economic crisis and the increasing disillusion with free market capitalism and rampant materialism. As an idealistic, spiritually inclined person myself, I am thrilled. I have been a George Harrison fan since I was a child in the 1960s, and have often said that if I’d been old enough, I would have followed The Beatles to Rishikesh. Well, in a sense I did, though it took me a few years to finally get there. I wrote about my visit to The Beatles ashram in Memories of Rishidwar.
Living in the Material World includes lots of great footage of George Harrison in interview. In one, he says that because he was showered with success, money, and fame at an early age — the things people work their entire lives to reach — he realized how empty they were; how these things don’t fill the inner craving. After experimenting with mind-altering substances in England, he began to dream about yogis in the Himalayas, and felt called to go to India. We all know the rest of the story. (more…)
Naseeruddin Shah in Michael
Michael is a new “Hindie” film from India with a powerhouse duo behind it: producer Anurag Kashyap and star Naseeruddin Shah. Directed by first-timer Rubhir Dasgupta, the film follows Shah’s eponymous character on a dark psychological journey through the streets of north Kolkata (Calcutta). Michael is demonized by an action from his past — accidentally shooting a 12-year-old boy while on duty as a police officer — and it’s ramifications on his present. His own son is about to turn 12; and he is terrified that the father of the dead boy is planning to kill his son for revenge.
Rubhir Dasgupta and Guneet Monga on stage at TIFF
The film is a study in karma, and while the storyline is interesting, the naturalistic talent of actor Naseeruddin Shah and the tarnished beauty of Kolkata are the real stars. As he explained after the film’s premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), both actor and location were very deliberately chosen by writer/director Rubhir Dasgupta.
Dasgupta was at the film, along with one of the other producers of the film, Guneet Monga. These filmmakers are part of the “new age” of Indian cinema. Kashyap wrote and directed That Girl in Yellow Boots, Gulaal and Dev.D, among other films; and wrote the Deepa Mehta film Water (one of my all-time favourite films). Monga was an associate producer on That Girl in Yellow Boots and a co-producer of Trishna.
The movies they make are very different than stereotypical “Bollywood” fare. They do not feature song-and-dance numbers, melodramatic love stories, big-budget productions or mega-stars. Instead, they evoke a sense of naturalism and tell dramatic, personal stories that reveal both psychological truth and modern-day India. (more…)
Freida Pinto as Trishna
His voice was filled with exasperation, and the churned-up emotion of watching tragedy unfold before him, onscreen. “Didn’t she realize she had the upper hand,” he asked. “He kept coming back to her. Why didn’t she take control of the relationship?”
He was a white Canadian, a “gora,” who had — like me — just sat through the premiere of Trishna at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film, based on Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the D’Urbervilles and set in modern-day India, was directed by Michael Winterbottom (Jude). It stars Freida Pinto (Slumdog Milionaire) and Riz Ahmed as the doomed lovers swept up in the tumult of a changing society. The decision to set the story in modern India was brilliant, and gave the film multi-layered depth, the sheen of reality and the depth of pathos. (more…)
Elephant at Breakaway premier
Breakaway is a new Canadian film about a young Sikh Canadian man (Vinay Virmani) who is a mad about hockey — against the wishes of his traditional, turban-wearing father (Anupam Kher). It’s set in suburban Toronto and features Russell Peters, Rob Lowe and a cameo by Akshay Kumar. The film explores the meeting of Sikh/Punjabi/Indian and Canadian culture, and attempts to reconcile them against the backdrop of Canada’s national sport (and pseudo-religion) — hockey.
On Saturday, September 10, the film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) with a raucous Punjabi-themed parade on Yonge Street that included bhangra music and dance, a painted elephant, Miss India-Canada, the cast and crew in colourful autorickshaws and Bollywood star Akshay Kumar on a white horse. The waiting crowd loved it and camera lights were flashing. It was a great start to a fun, feel-good movie. However, the film didn’t quite live up to its promise. (more…)
Indian actor Abhay Deol at Masala!Mehndi!Masti! in Toronto
Masala!Mehndi!Masti! is the premier Indian cultural event in Toronto, and each year it seems to get bigger and better. I’ve been going for about five years, and I have seen Nandita Das and Lisa Ray interviewed; I’ve watched Bollywood and Odissi dancing; I’ve listened to sitar music and Autorickshaw; I’ve bought jewelry and eaten dosas, and, perhaps most of all, I’ve enjoyed a weekend of immersing myself in the masala milieu. Every year, it’s a bit like a mini-trip to India.
Festival founder and director Abhishek Mathur wrote, “Just like a sacred thread, M!M!M! ties and binds the diverse parts of the culture, connecting and creating continuity, while not compromising the uniqueness of each part.” And that is exactly what it is like. At the opening reception, I came to realize what a labour of love M!M!M! is for Abhishek and his dedicated team. I was stunned to find out this massive festival, with three solid days of programming, is completely volunteer run. No wonder they continually take time out to thank their sponsors (including OMNI TV, Toyota, WestJet, TourismToronto etc.) (more…)
The Speedy Singhs hockey team: Breakaway cast with Vinay Virmani, right
Breakaway sounds like the penultimate Canadian film: first and second generation Indo-Canadian family members clash over traditional culture versus hockey. And it’s funny! I haven’t seen the film yet, but I saw the trailer at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) press conference — held in the elegant Imperial Room of the Fairmont Royal York Hotel! — and I laughed-out-loud. How can you not laugh when Russell Peters is on-screen? But don’t take my word for it, watch the trailer below. (more…)
Aamir Khan as Disco Fighter in Delhi Belly
The first cross-over hit?
Like every traveler to India (and many Indians), I have had my share of Delhi belly. It’s not usually fun — unlike the new film, produced by Aamir Khan. The film Delhi Belly is a roller-coaster ride through real, and modern, Delhi. The main plot line is about three friends (Imran Khan, Kunaal Roy Kapur and Vir Das) who get entangled in a diamond smuggling ring, while many other comical sub-plots about girlfriends, fiances, bosses, landlords, and, yes, a bout of Delhi belly, play out as the movie barrels along at break-neck speed with a high-tempo, infectious soundtrack. The film’s directorial style has been compared to Quentin Tarantino and Guy Ritchie, but I think it’s something new altogether. Director Abhinay Deo and writer Akshat Verma have talent.
The main reason I like this film is that it’s good — all of it, the direction, cast, music, plot, ending — but there are other reasons I like it, too. For one thing, it shows us the real Delhi, the Delhi I know — not a Bollywood-ized version. For another, it is a refreshing, new, modern style of Indian film. It’s not a western film, it’s definitely Indian, but it speaks a modern language that should appeal to westerners (though not to everyone as much of the humour is crude and rude). Most of the film is in English, which also adds to its universality.
The cameo by Aamir Khan at the end of the film, in an “item” number (song and dance) is hilarious, and almost worth the price of admission. It also adds a post-modern element that, again, western audiences will appreciate (as long as they know who Aamir Khan is — and if they don’t, they probably will one day. I think he’s the most talented person working in film today, anywhere.)
I have been waiting for some time for the first real crossover hit, and Delly Belhi could be it. I know it’s coming; I’ve known for some time it’s coming. I don’t think Slumdog Millionaire is it, as the film was made by a westerner (Danny Boyle). My money is on either Shahrukh Khan or Aamir Khan. Shahrukh will make a big budget action flick, that casts him as an Indian version of Rocky or some other manly-but-tender hero figure; with Aamir, it’s going to be hip, clever and offbeat, like Delhi Belly.
Enjoy the trailer, which gives you a flavour of the real film — but only a fraction of the madness.
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Aurovalley Ashram, near Rishikesh, India is a haven of peace, natural beauty and conscious living. Visitors can walk to the Ganga, learn the Sri Aurobindo philosophy of Integral Yoga and relax in a quiet, safe and inspiring environment.
Attempting to achieve some kind of yoga ideal, based on perfection of physical postures (asanas), is not yoga. Mark Whitwell sets the record straight about what yoga is.
