15th Annual NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL
May 4 - 9, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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LABOUR OF LOVE sweeps prestigious jury awards at
15th annual New York Indian Film Festival |
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(New York, NY – May 12, 2015) Of the 50 features, documentaries and short films showcased at the 15th edition of the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), jury members gravitated toward awarding movies like LABOUR OF LOVE, MARGARITA WITH A STRAW, HARAAMKHOR, KAAKA MUTTAI and DAUGTHERS OF MOTHER INDIA. The longest-running, most prestigious South Asian film festival in the Untied States was attended by Indian film industry glitterati such as Kalki Koechlin, Vishal Bhardwaj, Hansal Mehta, Shonali Bose, Anant Mahadevan, Mohan Agashe, L. Subramaniam, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Sharat Katariya and Vibha Bakshi, just to name a few. Young, up-and-coming filmmakers also showcased their films at the festival: the likes of Samrat Chakrabarti, Jaydeep Sarkar, Anshuman Jha, Abhay Kumar, Manu Warrier, Shlok Sharma, Manoj Nitharwal and Ravi Kapoor. In addition to screenings, the festival boasted a week of special events, industry panels and networking parties.
NYIFF jurors and participating filmmakers presented awards to the following films / actors: |
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Best Film: LABOUR OF LOVE
Best Director: ADITYA VIKRAM SENGUPTA, LABOUR OF LOVE
Best Screenplay: ADITYA VIKRAM SENGUPTA, LABOUR OF LOVE
Best Actor: NAWAZZUDIN SIDDIQUI, HARAAMKHOR
Best Actress: KALKI KOECHLIN, MARGARITA WITH A STRAW
Best Child Actor: J. VIGNESH & RAMESH, KAAKAA MUTTAI
Best Short Film: SEEK & HIDE, DIRECTOR MANOJ NITHARWAL
Best Documentary Film: DAUGTHERS OF MOTHER INDIA, DIRECTOR VIBHA BAKSHI |
| "We are so proud of our award--winning filmmakers and ALL the filmmakers who have showcased quality, independent cinema at our festival over the past week," said Aroon Shivdasani, NYIFF Director. "The response from the community has been phenomenal, and we hope NYIFF continues to make a mark on the New York independent film circuit." |
About the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC):
The Indo-American Arts Council is a registered 501(c) 3 not-for-profit, secular service and resource arts organization charged with the mission of promoting and building the awareness, creation, production, exhibition, publication and performance of Indian and cross-cultural art forms in North America. The IAAC supports all artistic disciplines in the classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to work with artists and arts organizations in North America as well as to facilitate artists and arts organizations from India to exhibit, perform and produce their works here. |
About the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF):
The New York Indian Film Festival (originally the IAAC Film Festival) opened their doors in 2001 following the devastation of the September 11attacks on New York City. This festival creates an awareness and better understanding of the people and stories from the Indian Diaspora by bringing the most acclaimed feature films, documentaries, and shorts from that region to America's biggest and most remarkable city. Merchant-Ivory's Shakespearewalla was the festival's Opening Night, while Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' closed IAAC’s first film festival before its worldwide theatrical release. Since then, the festival has provided first-looks at many acclaimed films, including Deepa Mehta's Oscar-nominated 'Water,' and 'Midnight's Children', Nair's 'The Namesake,' and 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' and the New York Premiere of Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionaire' which won eight Oscars including Best Picture. Some of the artists who support the festival include Mira Nair, Salman Rushdie, Madhur Jaffrey, Padma Lakshmi, Shabana Azmi, Rishi Kapoor & Neetu Singh Kapoor, Shashi Tharoor, Sarita Chaudhury, Sakina Jaffrey, Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, Mani Ratnam, Aparna Sen, the late filmmakers Ismail Merchant and Rituparno Ghosh. NYIFF's 15th anniversary will include premiere film screenings, discussions, industry panels, nightly networking parties, special events, an awards ceremony, and red carpet galas. The festival will run May 4th to 9th at a variety of prestigious New York City venues, including the Skirball Center for Performing Arts, the Paris Theatre and the Village East Cinemas. For the latest news, updates and information about The 15th Annual New York Indian Film Festival, presented by The Indo-American Arts Council, please visit www.iaac.us |
IMAGES FOR PRESS: High-resolution stills of NYIFF 2015 are available by request
PRESS CONTACT: JINGO Media, Jitin Hingorani - Jitin@JingoMedia.com or 512.773.6679. |
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NYIFF Announces Movie Award Categories, Esteemed Jury Panel
& Closing Night Film |
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(New York, NY - April 29, 2015) The New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), the country’s most prestigious, longest-running South Asian film festival, announces its movie award categories, esteemed panel of jurors and CLOSING NIGHT FILM. The six-day festival (May 4 to 9) will showcase more than 30 shorts, documentaries and feature films, along with special events, networking parties and Q&A sessions with directors, actors and producers. For the entire festival schedule & locations, please go HERE. To purchase tickets for the gala, buy festival passes or score individual screening tickets, please go HERE.
NYIFF 2015 Award Categories & Nominees Are (Drum Roll, please…): |
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Best Picture |
| 1 |
City Lights |
| 2 |
My Big Fat Bride |
| 3 |
Gour Hari Dastaan |
| 4 |
Labour of Love |
| 5 |
Margarita, with a Straw |
| 6 |
Saari Raat |
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Best Actor |
| 1 |
Ayushmann Khurrana (My Big Fat Bride) |
| 2 |
Dulal Sarkar (Chotoder Chobi) |
| 3 |
Rajkumar Rao (City Lights) |
| 4 |
Vikram Gokhale (Siddhant) |
| 5 |
Vinay Pathak (Gour Hari Dastaan) |
| 6 |
Nawazuddin Siddiqui (Haraamkhor) |
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Best Short |
| 1 |
Bloody Moustache |
| 2 |
Hechki |
| 3 |
Nayantara's Necklace |
| 4 |
Seek & Hide |
| 5 |
Zor |
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Best Screenplay |
| 1 |
Chauranga |
| 2 |
Choteder Chobi |
| 3 |
Haraamkhor |
| 4 |
Labour of Love |
| 5 |
Margarita, with a Straw |
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Best Director |
| 1 |
Aditya Vikram Sengupta (Labour of Love) |
| 2 |
Ananth Mahadevan (Gour Hari Dastaan) |
| 3 |
Aparna Sen (Saari Raat) |
| 4 |
Hansal Mehta (City Lights) |
| 5 |
Sharat Katariya (My Big Fat Bride) |
| 6 |
Shonali Bose (Margarita, with a Straw) |
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Best Actress |
| 1 |
Bhumi Pednekar (My Big Fat Bride) |
| 2 |
Debalina Roy (Chotoder Chobi) |
| 3 |
Kalki Koechlin (Margarita, with a Straw) |
| 4 |
Konkana Sen (Gour Hari Dastan) |
| 5 |
Konkana Sen (Saari Raat) |
| 6 |
Tannishtha Chatterjee (Rough Book) |
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Best Documentary |
| 1 |
A Moment of Misgiving |
| 2 |
Being Bhaijaan |
| 3 |
Daughters of Mother India |
| 4 |
Meet the Patels |
| 5 |
Placebo |
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Best Child Actor |
| 1 |
Archit Dewadhar (Siddhant) |
| 2 |
J. Vignesh & Ramesh (Kaakaa Muttai) |
| 3 |
Shameem Khan (Yeh Hai Bakrapur) |
| 4 |
Shrirang Mahajan (Elizabeth Ekadashi) |
| 5 |
Soham Maitra & Riddhi Sen (Chauranga) |
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***Winners in each category will be announced at the closing night awards ceremony on Saturday, May 9 AFTER the closing night film, which will be Yash Raj Films’ MY BIG FAT BRIDE, directed by Sharat Katariya and starring Ayushmann Khuranna & Bhumi Pednakar. It’s a heartfelt story about a mismatched couple trying to find themselves and each other between their own complexes and dysfunctional, yet endearing, families.
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NYIFF 2015’s Panel of Jurors Includes (in alphabetical order, by last name):
- Parag Amladi
- Ashish Avikunthak
- Dev Benegal
- Tejaswini Ganti
- Udayan Gupta
- Le Frances Hui
- Poorna Jagannathan
- Joseph Mathew
- Myrna Moncayo-Iyengar
- Claus Mueller
- Muriel (Mike) Peters
- Zenobia Shroff
- Nilita Vachani
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For a complete bio and more information on each juror, please go HERE. |
About the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC):
The Indo-American Arts Council is a registered 501(c) 3 not-for-profit, secular service and resource arts organization charged with the mission of promoting and building the awareness, creation, production, exhibition, publication and performance of Indian and cross-cultural art forms in North America. The IAAC supports all artistic disciplines in the classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to work with artists and arts organizations in North America as well as to facilitate artists and arts organizations from India to exhibit, perform and produce their works here. |
About the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF):
The New York Indian Film Festival (originally the IAAC Film Festival) opened their doors in 2001 following the devastation of the September 11attacks on New York City. This festival creates an awareness and better understanding of the people and stories from the Indian Diaspora by bringing the most acclaimed feature films, documentaries, and shorts from that region to America's biggest and most remarkable city. Merchant-Ivory's Shakespearewalla was the festival's Opening Night, while Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' closed IAAC’s first film festival before its worldwide theatrical release. Since then, the festival has provided first-looks at many acclaimed films, including Deepa Mehta's Oscar-nominated 'Water,' and 'Midnight's Children', Nair's 'The Namesake,' and 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' and the New York Premiere of Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionaire' which won eight Oscars including Best Picture. Some of the artists who support the festival include Mira Nair, Salman Rushdie, Madhur Jaffrey, Padma Lakshmi, Shabana Azmi, Rishi Kapoor & Neetu Singh Kapoor, Shashi Tharoor, Sarita Chaudhury, Sakina Jaffrey, Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, Mani Ratnam, Aparna Sen, the late filmmakers Ismail Merchant and Rituparno Ghosh. NYIFF's 15th anniversary will include premiere film screenings, discussions, industry panels, nightly networking parties, special events, an awards ceremony, and red carpet galas. The festival will run May 4th to 9th at a variety of prestigious New York City venues, including the Skirball Center for Performing Arts, the Paris Theatre and the Village East Cinemas. For the latest news, updates and information about The 15th Annual New York Indian Film Festival, presented by The Indo-American Arts Council, please visit www.iaac.us.
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IMAGES FOR PRESS: High-resolution stills of NYIFF 2015 films are available by request.
PRESS ACCREDITATION: If you are interested in applying for credentials to attend and cover the NYIFF 2015, please email us directly.
PRESS CONTACT: JINGO Media, Jitin Hingorani - Jitin@JingoMedia.com or 512.773.6679 |
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NYIFF Welcomes Filmmakers, Sponsors, Media to
Official Festival Kick-Off Cocktail Reception |
(New York, NY - April 9, 2015) The New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) unveils its entire lineup, shares its festival schedule and provides a sneak peek at the 30+ finely-curated shorts, docs and features at the official festival kick-off cocktail reception, which will take place at the Delhi Art Gallery on Thursday, April 16 from 6:30 p.m. onwards. Five of the films selected for NYIFF 2015 have recently won the Indian National Award in various categories across the cinematic spectrum.
This event will welcome filmmakers, sponsors and media to experience a taste of the longest-running, most prestigious South Asian film festival in the country, taking place from May 4 to 9, 2015, at various venues around Manhattan, including The Skirball Center for the Performing Arts, The Paris Theatre and Village East Cinemas. Media RSVP is required!!!
Gala Opening Night Film: Shonali Bose's MARGARITA WITH A STRAW at the Paris Theatre on May 4th, 2015, is the poignant portrayal of a rebellious young woman with cerebral palsy who leaves her home in India to study in New York, unexpectedly falls in love and embarks on an exhilarating journey of self-discovery. Starring Kalki Koechlin, Revathi & Sayani Gupta.
Centerpiece Film: Aparna Sen’s SAARI RAAT, a play in three acts by the legendary Bengali playwright and theatre personality Badal Sircar. It is also Sen’s tribute to Badal, who passed away in 2011. Starring Anjan Dutt, Rittwik Chakraborty, Konkona Sen Sharma.
Closing Night Film: Secret screening - To Be Announced at the kick-off event on April 16th.
Special Screenings & Festival Highlights:
- Vishal Bhardwaj's Shakespeare trilogy of MAQBOOL, OMKARA and HAIDER (winner of five National Awards for Best Dialogues, Best Music Direction Songs, Best Male Playback Singer, Best Costume Designer and Best Choreography), followed by a discussion between Bhardwaj and a Shakespearean expert.
- DAUGHTERS OF MOTHER INDIA (winner of National Award for Best Film on Social Issues - Non-Narrative), a special screening of this documentary film focused on the aftermath of the Delhi rape incident, given India’s ban on the broadcast of the rape documentary INDIA’S DAUGHTER.
- The South Asian Film Lab (SAFL): a creative workshop and incubator for film development in New York City will present staged readings of excerpts of three feature scripts in development. Fresh on the heels of a successful partnership with Made in NY Media Center by IFP and Writers Guild of America-East earlier this year, SAFL will present its second public showcase of screenplays work-shopped and developed at the Lab.
Festival Passes and individual tickets are on sale NOW. To purchase, please click HERE.
For the entire festival schedule, please click HERE.
About the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC):
The Indo-American Arts Council is a registered 501(c) 3 not-for-profit, secular service and resource arts organization charged with the mission of promoting and building the awareness, creation, production, exhibition, publication and performance of Indian and cross-cultural art forms in North America. The IAAC supports all artistic disciplines in the classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to work with artists and arts organizations in North America as well as to facilitate artists and arts organizations from India to exhibit, perform and produce their works here.
About the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF):
The New York Indian Film Festival (originally the IAAC Film Festival) opened their doors in 2001 following the devastation of the September 11attacks on New York City. This festival creates an awareness and better understanding of the people and stories from the Indian Diaspora by bringing the most acclaimed feature films, documentaries, and shorts from that region to America's biggest and most remarkable city. Merchant-Ivory's Shakespearewalla was the festival's Opening Night, while Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' closed IAAC’s first film festival before its worldwide theatrical release. Since then, the festival has provided first-looks at many acclaimed films, including Deepa Mehta's Oscar-nominated 'Water,' and 'Midnight's Children', Nair's 'The Namesake,' and 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' and the New York Premiere of Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionaire' which won eight Oscars including Best Picture. Some of the artists who support the festival include Mira Nair, Salman Rushdie, Madhur Jaffrey, Padma Lakshmi, Shabana Azmi, Rishi Kapoor & Neetu Singh Kapoor, Shashi Tharoor, Sarita Chaudhury, Sakina Jaffrey, Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, Mani Ratnam, Aparna Sen, the late filmmakers Ismail Merchant and Rituparno Ghosh. NYIFF's 15th anniversary will include premiere film screenings, discussions, industry panels, nightly networking parties, special events, an awards ceremony, and red carpet galas. The festival will run May 4th to 9th at a variety of prestigious New York City venues, including the Skirball Center for Performing Arts, the Paris Theatre and the Village East Cinemas. For the latest news, updates and information about The 15th Annual New York Indian Film Festival, presented by The Indo-American Arts Council, please visit www.iaac.us.
IMAGES FOR PRESS: High-resolution stills of NYIFF 2015 films are available by request.
PRESS ACCREDITATION: If you are interested in applying for credentials to attend and cover the NYIFF 2015, please email us directly.
PRESS CONTACT: JINGO Media, Jitin Hingorani - Jitin@JingoMedia.com or 512.773.6679 |
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15th Annual New York Indian Film Festival Announces
Its Dynamic Line-Up of 30 Shorts, Documentaries & Feature Films |
(New York, NY - March 24, 2015) The longest-running, most prestigious South Asian film festival in the country, New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), is proud to unveil its complete line-up of 30 films for its 15th annual showcase of ground-breaking, thought-provoking, independent cinema, to be screened at prestigious venues around New York City from May 4 to 9, 2015.
Gala Opening Night Film: Shonali Bose's MARGARITA WITH A STRAW at the Paris Theatre on May 4th, 2015, is the poignant portrayal of a rebellious young woman with cerebral palsy who leaves her home in India to study in New York, unexpectedly falls in love and embarks on an exhilarating journey of self-discovery. Starring Kalki Koechlin, Revathi & Sayani Gupta.
Centerpiece Film: Aparna Sen's SAARI RAAT, a play in three acts by the legendary Bengali playwright and theatre personality Badal Sircar. It is also Sen's tribute to Badal, who passed away in 2011. Starring Anjan Dutt, Rittwik Chakraborty, Konkona Sen Sharma.
Closing Night Film: Secret screening - To Be Announced on April 15th.
Special Screenings & Events:
- Vishal Bhardwaj's Shakespeare trilogy of MAQBOOL, OMKARA and HAIDER (winner of five National Awards for Best Dialogues, Best Music Direction Songs, Best Male Playback Singer, Best Costume Designer and Best Choreography), followed by a discussion between Bhardwaj and a Shakespearean expert.
- DAUGHTERS OF MOTHER INDIA (winner of National Award for Best Film on Social Issues - Non-Narrative), a special screening of this documentary film focused on the aftermath of the Delhi rape incident, given India's ban on the broadcast of the rape documentary INDIA'S DAUGHTER.
- BENEGAL'S NEW CINEMA, a documentary on Shyam Benegal's films, followed by a discussion with Benegal about the New Cinema Movement.
- South Asian Film Lab: launch, special short film screening, live reading of a screenplay.
- One-Minute cell phone films by NYU students.
- 72 Hour Shootout w/Asian American Film Lab.
- Industry Panels: 10 am - 5 pm on Friday May 8th, 2015.
"Every year, we strive to make our programming unique and relevant, based on the incidents that are occurring around the world, in South Asia and in our own backyard, New York City," said festival programmer Aseem Chhabra. "These selected films, which have won a combined total of nine National Awards, serve as a mirror, and we hope that our audiences can see their lives reflected in these stories."
NYIFF 2015 Features and Docs (in alphabetical order):
1.A Moment of Mishearing
2.Being Bhaijaan
3.Bench Talkies
4.Benegal's New Cinema
5.Bey Yaar
6.Chauranga
7.Chotoder Chobi (National Award Winner for Best Film on Social Issues - Narrative)
8.City of Dark
9.City Lights
10.Coffee Bloom
11.Daughters of Mother India (National Award Winner for Best Film on Social Issues - Non-Narrative)
12.Elizabeth Ekadashi (National Award Winner for Best Children's Film)
13.Gour Hari Dastaan
14.Haider (Winner of FIVE National Awards)
15.Haramkhor
16.I am Steve Lopez
17.Kakka Muttai (National Award Winner for Best Children's Film & Best Child Artist)
18.M Cream
19.Maqbool
20.Margarita with a Straw
21.Meet the Patels
22.Miss India America
23.Omkara
24.Placebo
25.Rough Book
26.Saari Raat
27.Yeh Hai Bakrapur
The rest of the line-up will be announced shortly. For director's notes, trailers & synopses of these films, please go HERE.
- To purchase IAAC Membership, please click HERE.
- To purchase NYIFF Opening Night tickets and tables, please click HERE.
- Festival Passes and Individual Tickets go on sale April 1, 2015.
About the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC):
The Indo-American Arts Council is a registered 501(c) 3 not-for-profit, secular service and resource arts organization charged with the mission of promoting and building the awareness, creation, production, exhibition, publication and performance of Indian and cross-cultural art forms in North America. The IAAC supports all artistic disciplines in the classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to work with artists and arts organizations in North America as well as to facilitate artists and arts organizations from India to exhibit, perform and produce their works here.
About the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF):
The New York Indian Film Festival (originally the IAAC Film Festival) opened their doors in 2001 following the devastation of the September 11attacks on New York City. This festival creates an awareness and better understanding of the people and stories from the Indian Diaspora by bringing the most acclaimed feature films, documentaries, and shorts from that region to America's biggest and most remarkable city. Merchant-Ivory's Shakespearewalla was the festival's Opening Night, while Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' closed IAAC's first film festival before its worldwide theatrical release. Since then, the festival has provided first-looks at many acclaimed films, including Deepa Mehta's Oscar-nominated 'Water,' and 'Midnight's Children', Nair's 'The Namesake,' and 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' and the New York Premiere of Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionaire' which won eight Oscars including Best Picture. Some of the artists who support the festival include Mira Nair, Salman Rushdie, Madhur Jaffrey, Padma Lakshmi, Shabana Azmi, Rishi Kapoor & Neetu Singh Kapoor, Shashi Tharoor, Sarita Chaudhury, Sakina Jaffrey, Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, Mani Ratnam, Aparna Sen, the late filmmakers Ismail Merchant and Rituparno Ghosh. NYIFF's 15th anniversary will include premiere film screenings, discussions, industry panels, nightly networking parties, special events, an awards ceremony, and red carpet galas. The festival will run May 4th to 9th at a variety of prestigious New York City venues, including the Skirball Center for Performing Arts, the Paris Theatre and the Village East Cinemas. For the latest news, updates and information about The 15th Annual New York Indian Film Festival, presented by The Indo-American Arts Council, please visit www.iaac.us.
IMAGES FOR PRESS: High-resolution stills of NYIFF 2015 films are available by request.
PRESS ACCREDITATION: If you are interested in applying for credentials to attend and cover the NYIFF 2015, please email us directly.
PRESS CONTACT: JINGO Media, Jitin Hingorani - Jitin@JingoMedia.com or 512.773.6679 |
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THE 15th ANNUAL NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES
SPECIAL SCREENINGS OF VISHAL BHARDWAJ'S SHAKESPEARE TRILOGY |
New York, NY (March 3rd, 2015) - The New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) announced today a special screening of Vishal Bhardwaj's Shakespeare Trilogy as a feature of the 2015 festival. This event will show Bhardwaj's MAQBOOL, OMKARA, and HAIDER.
Bhardwaj is one of India's formost film directors whose talents include screen-writing, music composition, and playback singing. His career in the Indian film industry started out as a music composer, working on award-winning films such as Maachis (1996), Satya (1998) and Chachi 420 (1998) among others. His directoral debut was recognized with the critically acclaimed Makdee (2002). His other directoral titles include Kaminey (2009), 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola (2013) and many more. His films have received wide critical acclaim across a variety of film festivals as well.
Bhardwaj is especially known for his adaption of Shakespeare's classic plays. His Shakespeare Trilogy - Maqbool (2003), based on Macbeth, Omkara (2006), based on Othello and his latest film, Haider (2014), based on Hamlet - have received national and international acclaim as well as a huge cult following.
MAQBOOL (2003, 132 minutes, Hindi/Urdu)
Macbeth meets the Godfather in present-day Mumbai. The Scottish tragedy is set in contemporary underworld of India's commercial capital; two corrupt, fortune telling policemen take the roles of the weird sisters, and "Duncan" is Abbaji, the head of a crime family. Abbajis mistress and Maqbool plot to carry out his death; the sea plays the role of Burnham wood.
OMKARA (2006, 155 minutes, Hindi)
Shakespeare's masterpiece "Othello" set in modern day India. A political minded enforcer's misguided trust in his lieutenant leads him to suspect his wife of infidelity.
HAIDER (2014, 162 minutes, Hindi)
A young man returns to Kashmir after his father's disappearance to confront his uncle - the man who had a role in his father's fate and who is now his mother's husband.
"Prolific writer, composer, director Vishal Bhardwaj's Shakespeare Trilogy is an amazing Special Event at NYIFF 2015. We are really excited that Vishal has agreed to screen and discuss all three films in their Shakesperean context at our festival" said IAAC Artistic Director Aroon Shivdasani.
Visha Bhardwaj stated "A Filmmaker changes and grows with every film. I am thrilled to see my Shakespeare trilogy at NYIFF and trace both my personal and professional journey's over the last decade in my films and music."
The special screenings of Bhardwaj's Shakespeare Trilogy and post-screening discussions will take place during the main festival at the Village East Cinemas, 2nd Avenue and 12th Street, May 5-9, 2015.
Celebrating its 15th year, NYIFF will run May 4th to May 10th, 2015. The full line-up of screenings and events will be announced on March 15th, 2015.
To purchase IAAC Membership: http://www.iaac.us/Contribution.htm
To purchase NYIFF Opening Night tickets and tables: http://www.iaac.us/NYIFF2015/ON-Invitation.htm
Festival Passes and Individual Tickets go on sale April 1, 2015 at the festival's
website: http://www.iaac.us/NYIFF2015/about_us.htm.
About the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC):
The Indo-American Arts Council is a registered 501(c)3 not-for-profit, secular service and resource arts organization charged with the mission of promoting and building the awareness, creation, production, exhibition, publication and performance of Indian and cross-cultural art forms in North America. The IAAC supports all artistic disciplines in the classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to work with artists and arts organizations in North America as well as to facilitate artists and arts organizations from India to exhibit, perform and produce their works here.
About the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF)
The New York Indian Film Festival (originally the IAAC Film Festival) opened their doors in 2001 following the devastation of the September 11attacks on New York City. This festival creates an awareness and better understanding of the people and stories from the Indian Diaspora by bringing the most acclaimed feature films, documentaries, and shorts from that region to America's biggest and most remarkable city. Merchant-Ivory's Shakespearewalla was the festival's Opening Night, while Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' closed IAAC’s first film festival before its worldwide theatrical release. Since then, the festival has provided first-looks at many acclaimed films, including Deepa Mehta's Oscar-nominated 'Water,' and 'Midnight's Children', Nair's 'The Namesake,' and 'The Reluctant Fundalmentalist' and the New York Premiere of Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionaire' which won eight Oscars including Best Picture. Some of the artists who support the festival include Nair Mehta, Salman Rushdie, Madhur Jaffrey, Padma Lakshmi, Shabana Azmi, Rishi Kapoor & Neetu Singh Kapoor, Shashi Tharoor, Sarita Chaudhury, Sakina Jaffrey, Anurag Kashyap, Shyam Benegal, Mani Ratnam, Aparna Sen, the late filmmakers Ismail Merchant and Rituparno Ghosh. NYIFF's 15th anniversary will include premiere film screenings, duscussions, industry panels, nightly networking parties, special events, an awards ceremony, and red carpet galas. The festival will run May 4th to 9th at a variety of prestigious New York City venues, including the Skirball Center for Performing Arts, the Paris Theatre and the Village East Cinemas.
For the latest news, updates and information about The 15th Annual New York Indian Film Festival, presented by The Indo-American Arts Council, please visit www.iaac.us.
PRESS CONTACT :
Neha Gandhi, nehagandhi1807@gmail.com
Like the NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL (NYIFF) Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/nyindianfilmfest.
Follow us on Twitter @NYIndianFF and join the conversation by using the hashtag #NYIndianFF.
IMAGES FOR PRESS: Additional film stills for the 2015 NYIFF will be available by request.
PRESS ACCREDITATION: If you are interested in applying for credentials to attend and cover the 2015 New York Indian Film Festival, please email Neha Gandhi nehagandhi1807@gmail.com |
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THE 15th ANNUAL NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES GALA
OPENING NIGHT FILM
Shonali Bose's MARGARITA WITH A STRAW |
New York, NY (February 16th, 2015) – The New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) announced today the Gala Opening Night film: Shonali Bose's MARGARITA WITH A STRAW at the Paris Theatre in New York City on May 4th, 2015. A rebellious young woman with cerebral palsy leaves her home in India to study in New York, unexpectedly falls in love, and embarks on an exhilarating journey of self-discovery.
The New York Indian Film Festival is widely recognized as the oldest, most prestigious South Asian film festival in the United States, showcasing some of the greatest talents working in the Indian Subcontinent as well as the diaspora. Celebrating its 15th year, NYIFF will run May 4th to 9th at a variety of prestigious New York City venues, including the Skirball Center for Performing Arts, the Paris Theatre and the Village East Cinemas.
Shonali Bose's Amu, which premiered at the New York Indian Film Festival in 2005, took on the wrenching communal conflict of India's recent past. In her new film she pursues a more intimate landscape, drawing on the experience of her own sister to illuminate the amazing Laila. Koechlin - known for her edgy work in films by Anurag Kashyap - gives a performance full of both precision and heart. Cinematographer Anne Misawa (Treeless Mountain) uses creamy shallow focus and an elegant colour palette to situate Laila in a world alive with palpable beauty. Avoiding the pitfalls of cheap sentiment on the one side and moral instruction on the other, Margarita with a Straw is a consistently rewarding portrait of a young woman coming of age, making mistakes, and finding the unpredictable path of her own desire.
"We are thrilled to be opening this year's New York Indian Film Festival with Shonali Bose's new film MARGARITA WITH A STRAW," said IAAC Executive Director Aroon Shivdasani. "Shonali has been a loyal member of the NYIFF family for several years, as well as a rising star in the forefront of India's growing indie film movement, always pushing the boundaries as in her docudrama AMU, about the 1984 Sikh genocide, which also premiered at NYIFF in 2005 . "
Shonali is also the first Indian to receive the prestigious Sundance-Mahindra Global Filmmaker Award for the screenplay of her new film "Margarita with a Straw". The award was presented at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival after which the film premiered at TIFF 2014 where it won the NETPAC award for the best Asian Film! |
Director/writer Bose will participate in a post-screening conversation followed by the Opening Night Gala event with celebrated IAAC supporters and all NYIFF participating filmmakers in attendance.
"I have been a fan of Shonali Bose ever since I saw her film Amu - a moving tale of memory and the tragedy of the anti-Sikh riots in Delhi. Then last year I saw her new film Margarita with a Straw, with a Straw at the Toronto International Film Festival. It is a very mature story about a physically challenged person and her sexual desires - a subject that no one has dared to approach in India. We at NYIFF are so thrilled to be able to share this quiet masterpiece with our audience', said NYIFF Director Aseem Chhabra.
Celebrating its 15th year, NYIFF will run May 4th to May 10th, 2015. The full line-up of screenings and events will be announced on March 15th, 2015.
To purchase IAAC Membership: http://www.iaac.us/Contribution.htm
To purchase NYIFF Opening Night tickets and tables: http://www.iaac.us/NYIFF2015/ON-Invitation.htm
Festival Passes and Individual Tickets go on sale April 1, 2015 at the festival's
website: http://www.iaac.us/NYIFF2015/about_us.htm.
About the Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC):
The Indo-American Arts Council is a registered 501(c)3not-for-profit, secular service and resource arts organization charged with the mission of promoting and building the awareness, creation, production, exhibition, publication and performance of Indian and cross-cultural art forms in North America. The IAAC supports all artistic disciplines in the classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to work with artists and arts organizations in North America as well as to facilitate artists and arts organizations from India to exhibit, perform and produce their works here.
About the New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF):
The New York Indian Film Festival is the oldest, most prestigious Indian film festival in the United States. It is dedicated to showcasing, promoting and building an awareness of Independent, art house, alternate and diaspora films from/about/connected to the Indian subcontinent. Our mission is to encourage filmmakers to tell their stories, to educate North America about them and their talent and to facilitate the making and distribution of these films. NYIFF boasts six days of premiere screenings of feature, documentary & short films, industry panels, special events, retrospectives, red carpet galas, an award ceremony, packed audiences and amazing media coverage.
NYIFF 2015 RED CARPET OPENING NIGHT GALA BENEFIT SCREENING
6 pm Monday, May 4, 2015, at the Paris Theatre, 4 West 58th Street, New York City.
Shonali Bose's Margarita With A Straw
Directed by Shonali Bose,
India 2015, 100 Minutes, Hindi/English with English subtitles
PRINCIPAL CAST- Kalki Koechlin, Revathy, Sayani Gupta, William Moseley.
SECONDARY CAST- Hussain Dalal, Tenzin Dalha, Kuljeet Singh, Malhar Khushu.
Direct ticket link: http://www.iaac.us/NYIFF2015/ON-Invitation.htm
PRESS CONTACT :
Neha Gandhi, nehagandhi1807@gmail.com
Like the NEW YORK INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL (NYIFF) Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/nyindianfilmfest.
Follow us on Twitter @NYIndianFF and join the conversation by using the hashtag #NYIndianFF.
IMAGES FOR PRESS: Additional film stills for the 2015 NYIFF will be available by request.
PRESS ACCREDITATION: If you are interested in applying for credentials to attend and cover the 2015 New York Indian Film Festival, please email Neha Gandhi nehagandhi1807@gmail.com |
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Contact:
Asian American Film Lab, Inc.
Shootout@film-lab.org
New York Indian Film Festival
nyiff@iaac.us |
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| The New York Indian Film Festival and Asian American Film Lab to Collaborate to Promote Diversity |
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| The New York Indian Film Festival and the Asian American Film Lab to join forces to promote diverse filmmakers through the 72 Hour Shootout and productions ranging from film to television! |
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Feb. 1, 2015 - NEW YORK - The Asian American Film Lab™ (“Film Lab”), and the New York Indian Film Festival (“NYIFF”), are excited to announce they will be collaborating to promote diversity in mainstream media! NYIFF, an acclaimed festival now entering its fifteenth year, will now be adding a special screening of the top ten films of the Film Lab’s annual 72 Hour Shootout (the “Shootout”), the Film Lab’s well-known annual global filmmaking competition which promotes and supports diversity in mainstream media. The Film Lab will be airing specially selected short films, selected by NYIFF, on its AAFL TV series, “Film Lab Presents.”
Aroon Shivdasani, the executive director of the Indo-American Arts Council, explained, “NYIFF's mission is to showcase and present both veteran and emerging filmmakers, as well as to build an awareness of South Asian films in North America. We give filmmakers a platform to tell their stories and to educate mainstream America about the realities of other cultures. To this end, we are delighted to partner with the Asian American Film Lab to give our filmmakers yet another platform to display their talent to an ever more diverse audience.”
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Shootout Films to Screen at NYIFF 2015 |
Film Lab President and actor Jennifer Betit Yen commented, “We are so excited to be able to partner with NYIFF to not only encourage even more Indian filmmakers to participate in the Shootout but also to share the beautiful and brave films that their festival is so well known for via our production arm!”
The top 2014 Shootout films will next be screening at The Asians on Film Festival in Los Angeles in their West Coast premiere, which will take place on March 27 at 5pm. The Film Lab will open registration for the 2015 Shootout online at www.asianamericanfilmlab.com on March 1st. 2015 judges include ABC’s Marci Phillips, playwright David Henry Hwang, Don Buchwald’s David Elliott, Bertha Bay-Sa Pan of Slew Pictures, and many more. 2015 filmmakers will compete for an array of prizes including mentoring prizes from major networks and the chance to screen in New York and Los Angeles and on the Film Lab’s series, Film Lab Presents!
About the New York Indian Film Festival
NYIFF is North America's oldest and most prestigious destination for feature films, documentaries, and shorts from and about the Indian subcontinent and a once-a-year opportunity to experience the rich and diverse film cultures of the Indian subcontinent through premiere film screenings, discussions, industry panels, nightly networking parties, special events, an awards ceremony, and red carpet galas..NYIFF is run under the auspices of the Indo-American Arts Council (the “IAAC”).
The IAAC supports all the artistic disciplines in classical, fusion, folk and innovative forms influenced by the arts of India. We work cooperatively with colleagues around the United States to broaden our collective audiences and to create a network for shared information, resources and funding. Our focus is to help artists and art organizations in North America, as well as to facilitate artists from the Indian subcontinent to exhibit, perform and produce their work here. The IAAC is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization. All donations are tax- deductible to the fullest extent allowable by law. For further information, please visit www.iaac.us
About Asian American Film Lab
The Film Lab began in 1998 as collaborative of New York-based filmmakers whose goals were to hone their craft and to share their knowledge, experience and resources. The membership has grown to comprise professionals, artists and other talented individuals who all share the common goal of creating great film and promoting Asian American filmmakers and other filmmakers of color, and the visibility of their stories and characters in film and television. The Lab now runs monthly programs to promote gender and ethnic diversity in film and television. The Asian American Film Lab and Jennifer Betit Yen created AAFL TV in August 2013 to address an explosion of interest in diverse, original creative content along with a corresponding rising level of dissatisfaction with mainstream programming for a lack of diversity and/or perpetuation of racial stereotypes. AAFL TV partnered with NYCMedia, New York City’s flagship media station, to begin airing a television series entitled “Film Lab Presents,” consisting of 30 minute episodes of racially diverse original contemporary entertainment content in January 2014.
The Film Lab currently airs television series on NYCLife and CrossingsTV. The Film Lab is run under the direction of President Jennifer Betit Yen. Board members include Edwin Wong, James Kyson, Aaron Woolfolk, and Daryl King. The Film Lab’s other programming includes filmmaking workshops with industry professionals, screenwriting contests, and film competitions, including the annual 72 Hour Film Shootout. This annual competition, now in its eleventh year, has inspired hundreds of filmmakers by helping nascent talent take brave steps towards a filmmaking career.
The Asian American Film Lab is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. www.asianamericanfilmlab.org |
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