A Decent Arrangement Directed by Sarovar Banka
India/USA, 2011, 97 minutes, English, World Premiere
Cast-Shabana Azmi, Adam Laupus, Lethia Nall, Diksha Basu,
‘A Decent Arrangement’ is the story of Ashok Khosla, an Indian-American copywriter, who journeys to India seeking an arranged marriage. After he encounters an American woman traveling through India and is set up with an Indian woman who unexpectedly captivates him, Ashok must navigate the complexity of cultural traditions and the leanings of his own heart. With subtle comedy and true-to-life drama, ‘A Decent Arrangement’ shows us a side of India not commonly seen by western audiences and delivers an affecting story that resonates with those of us in search of our place in a changing world.
‘A Decent Arrangement’ is the first feature film by writer, producer and director Sarovar Banka. He is a graduate of Brown University, where he began his artistic career, performing sketch comedy, writing plays and making short films. His first full length plays were produced in Providence, RI and ‘The Moral Implications of Time Travel’ won the Weston Award for best undergraduate play at Brown. That play was also developed with the Indo-American Arts Council as part of their annual playwrights’ festival. Other plays that followed were subsequently performed in New York. In 2007, he was invited to the Lincoln Center Director’s Lab to participate as a playwright. Concurrently, Sarovar has been making films in various capacities for the past ten years, serving as writer, director, producer and cinematographer on short subjects. He also completed several feature screenplays. He studied in New York University’s Summer Intensive filmmaking workshops and went on to make ‘Edgar’ in 2005, which played at the Rhode Island International Film Festival and the Rome International Film Festival (GA). Sarovar is originally from Philadelphia, PA where he still resides.
With: Wedding Night Directed by Sabrina England
USA, 2010, 21 minutes, New York Premiere
A bride arrives in the United States from Pakistan to meet her new husband on their wedding night for the first time. They both have high expectations, only to end up with major disappointment.
