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#TamilNadu; #CelestialCulture; #Tradition; #DivineDances; #DivineMusicalDancers Canadian-Media: The documentary ‘Divine Musical Dancers’ directed, produced, and written by Ken Kandiah from Canada reflects the ethereal culture of Tamil Nadu, in South India through the performances of a celebrated dance group from Tamil Nadu — comprising of 4 states namely Chennai, Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh — in South India.  Image credit: sevenhillpictures.com This dance group performs with two musical instruments Nathan Nathanvaram and Melam. When played together they produce a most sanctified music Mandala Isai, which is part of the essential component of traditional festivals and ceremonies in South India.   Images credit: Screenshot from the video Generally used in celebrations and welcoming ceremonies, these performances are played in the procession of the day-to-day temple festivals and most commonly in wedding ceremonies. These performances are based on the song produced by Lord Shiva who performs his immortal dance called the Shiva Tandava, which describes Shiva's power traditionally attributed to Ravana, the King of Lanka, who is considered to be a great devotee of Shiva.  Shiva Tandava Stotra. Image credit: Wallpaper Cave The sounds of the ritual ceremonies by the farm musical instruments can be easily identified when theses are played together to produce the most sublime melodious tuneful quality. Bharatanatyam, one of the oldest Indian classical dance originated in Tamil Nadu, depicted in this documentary is accompanied by the Karnataka music which is led by one of the females performing those dances. The songs sung are known as Vallik Kanavan sung by Sudha Ragunathan, and Edayyagati Ð Koteeswarayer Ð Chalanata — Adi sung by E. Gaayathri. The female performances also play Samboo. Their texts are in 5 languages, namely Malayalam; Tamil; Telugu; Kannada, and Sanskrit.  Bharatanatyam. Image credit: Wikipedia The cinematography is done by Francesco Bori and the sound provided by David Moffat. Post-production of this documentary is expected to be completed by Aug 1, 2021. The expected release of this documentary is unknown.
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Ken Kandiah's 'Pearl in the Blood' is a tale of rapes, killings based on 2009 Srilankan civil war3/25/2021 #PearlInTheBlood; #FeatureFilm; #KenKandiah; #TamilNadu; #RapesAndKillings; #LawAndOrder Toronto/Canadian-Media: Produced, directed, and written by Ken Kandiah, 'Pearl in the Blood' is a feature film based on true events of Srilankan civil war of 20o9 depicting a malignant society of numerous rapes, crimes and murders and was filmed in Tamil Nadu in 2019.  Pearl in the Blood. Image credit: http://sevenhillpictures.com A basketball player-turned-actor, Sampath Ram stars in the 'Pearl in the Blood' and reveals what it takes to play the bad guy in films, with constant fear that keeps him on his toes.  Sampathram. Image credit: http://sevenhillpictures.com The film is produced by Sevenhill Pictures, a Canadian film & television production company, based in Toronto provides production services for independent filmmakers outside the major film studio system, distinguishable by the criteria of the quality of content, style and its artistic vision. With an expertise to produce documentaries for television, international film festivals and for online distribution, Sevenhill Pictures specializes in producing on social, political, economic, religious, strategic, travel and international issues. Having access to the network of researchers, journalists, academia, scholars, analysts, and media professionals, Sevenhill Pictures uses their expertise to produce documentary films, as well as films for human rights groups and non-profit organizations. 'Pearl in the Blood' shows the horrible crimes and shootings committed without any judgement and portrays the menace of rapes and then being shot dead. The film raises awareness of the loathing conditions prevailing in Tamil Nadu where the criminals just escape and not being punished. Many parents mourn for their whole lives about the loss of their beloved daughters, many husbands lose their tortured and raped wives. Any attempt on the part of the victims to save themselves result in their murder.  Image credit: http://sevenhillpictures.com Sevenhill Pictures has options to produce with considerably lower budgets for limited release for independent movie theaters, and for wide release. Sevenhill Pictures also helps you to produce for screening at local, national, or international film festivals before distribution, and also provide you information regarding necessary funding and distribution Independent producers, emerging documentary producers and human rights activists are invited by Sevenhill Pictures for co-production to work on projects of common interests here and overseas. The film did not use live sound only used dubbing. Other actors in movie are kalpanasri and Godwin. The release date of the film has yet not been reported. #TamilNadu; #DivineDancesInHeaven; Documentary; #KenKandiah Toronto/Canadian-Media: Produced and Directed by Ken Kandiah, 'Divine Dancers in Heaven' is a documentary that showcases the dances of Tamil Nadu, in which the main singer relates a tale, interspersed with lively songs.  Divine Dancers in Heaven Documentary. Image credit: www.sevenhillpictures.com Sevenhill Pictures, a Canadian film & television production company, based in Toronto, is responsible for producing this documentary under the directorship, and being produced by Ken Kandiah. Sevenhill Pictures Production company also produces motion pictures, television dramas, documentaries, and web videos & video commercials. Sevenhill Pictures is equipped with the state of the art technology from film cameras, professional lighting, sound recording system, editing machine, and computer graphics, and with a professional team, scriptwriters, production designers, directors, and video editors, etc. also provides production management services from scripting to final cut to first copy. Considered as a cultural paradise, Tamil Nadu well known for several celebrated folk dances. Traditional dances in Tamil Nadu have long been a sacred expression of faith, some of which performed by Tribal people are still thriving in Tamil Nadu today. Many forms of group and individual dances with the classical forms for popularity and sheer entertainment value are also thriving in Tamil Nadu today.  Divine Dancers in Heaven. Image credit: http://sevenhillpictures.com Some examples of popular dances of Tamil Nadu are Bagavatha Nadanam, Bommalattam or Puppet Show, Bharathanatyam (a world-renowned Classical Dance from Tamil Nadu), Chakkai Attam, Devaraattam, Kamandi or Kaman Pandigai, and many more.  Divine Dancers in Heaven. Image credit: http://sevenhillpictures.com A Canadian producer, director, and writer, Ken Kandiah possesses not only excellent production skills but also award-winning direction skills with which he has written, produced, and directed some feature-length films and documentaries in English as well as Urdu/Hindi language. Ken has been awarded the best director award for the International Feature Film Romeo Romances (Beneath the Skin - The Untold Story – previous name)’ at the New York International Indy Film &Video Festival in Las Vegas, U.S.A. (April 2002). ‘Romeo Romances also garnished the best Romantic Drama and the Best Foreign Feature Film awards. After qualifying in filmmaking and direction programs from US and Canadian film schools, Ken participated in many filmmaking workshops and delivered lectures on direction and production. The documentary 'Divine Dancers in Heaven' is in post-production and its release date has not yet been finalized. Filmed in Sevenhill Pictures, based in Toronto, Ontario, Cinematography of the 'Divine Dancers in Heaven' has been provided by Francesco Bori, and sound provided by Dave Moffat. #Bollywood; #KareenaKapoor Mumbai/IBNS: Actors Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan welcome their second child on Sunday and it is a baby boy for the royal couple.  Kareena Kappor. Image credit: Kareena Kapoor Khan Instagram page On Saturday night Kareena was admitted to Bridge Candy Hospital, according to media reports. In a joint statement, Kareena and Saif announced in August 2020 that they are expecting a second baby. "We are very pleased to announce that we are expecting an addition to our family!! Thank you to all our well-wishers for all their love and support. -- Saif and Kareena," they announced. The couple was blessed with their first son Taimur Ali Khan in 2016. All throughout her second pregnancy, Kareena grabbed media attention for her style while actively working for her professional commitments. #Jallikattu, #Oscars2021; #India; #MalayalamFilm; #Jallikattu India/Canadian-Media: Malayalam film Jallikattu, directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery, out of 27 films from different languages, was selected by the Film Federation of India and leads to India's official entry to the 93rd Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences (Oscar) Awards 2021, media reports said.  Image: Jallikattu. Image credit: Wikipedia "This year we received 27 final entries for selection...congratulations to the entire team of Jallikattu on being selected as our official entry to Oscars!" remarked Firdausul Hasan, President of Film Federation of India. Jallikattu featuring Antony Varghese, Chemban Vinod Jose, Sabumon Abdusamad and Santhy Balachandran, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sept 6, 2019. The plot of the film revolves around a bull which escapes from a slaughterhouse in a remote village in the hills. After its escape, all village men gather to hunt down the bull. The Jury Committee chaired by Rahul Rawail met virtually this year keeping in mind the worldwide pandemic crisis. The decision was made by a simple majority among 14 Jury members as ‘Jallikattu’ the best film to represent our great Nation at the upcoming Oscar Awards. "The 14 member Jury was touched by the rawness the film depicted, the complexity of human emotions with well fleshed out characters. We believe this is the right choice and we sincerely hope it gets further selected by the Academy in due course of time" said Rawail.
By Renu Mehta, Toronto
#Toronto; #FunnyBoy; #Canada'sOscarsAward; #HumanRightsFestival; #NewDelhi; #India; #OpeningFilmOfEnGendered Toronto, Nov 7 (Canadian-Media): Deepa Mehta’s new film Funny Boy, selected as Canada’s entry for the Oscars, has now achieved another triumph. Based on a book by Shyam Selvadurai, the film has now been chosen as the opening film of EnGendered, a major Human Rights festival in New Delhi, India on Dec 10, media reports said. 
Deepa Mehta. Image credit: Facebook page
The film, about Love and War, Conflict and Sexuality, is set amidst a background of Tamil oppression and resistance and narrates the story of Arjie (played by Arush Nand in childhood and Brandon Ingram as a teenager), a boy from an upper class Tamil family in Colombo who loves dressing up as a girl and cannot understand why he is called Funny. Growing up in Sri Lanka in the 70s and 80s, Arjie explores his sexuality in the film and comes of age at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in Sri Lanka.
Funny Boy. Image credit: Hamilton-Mehta Production
Amidst a backdrop of intolerance for his sexuality, the narration explores the drifting relations between the Sinhalese majority community and the Tamil minorities, clearly weaving a picture of the genocide committed against the Tamils and depicting the repression of minorities amidst a background of turbulence and ethnic tension.
“From the very beginning, Deepa understood the book and loved it. I always had trust she would do it correctly,” says Selvadurai
It took the production house a year to cast for the film in several cities including London, Toronto and Colombo. The stellar cast includes several well-known names like Seema Biswas and Ali Kazmi as well as Agam Darshi, Brandon Ingram and Tracy Holsinger. 50 per cent of the principal cast comprises Sri Lankan/Tamil origin actors including Nimmi Harasgama as Amma, a Tamil Sinhalese British Sri Lanka award winning actor and writer; Shivantha Wijesinha as Jegan, award winning actor and singer/songwriter from Sri Lanka and Rehan Mudannayake as Shehan. 
Funny Boy. Image credit: nowtoronto.com
“This is an international film and Deepa is an Indo-Canadian director,” says Damith Chandimal, LGBTQ+ and Human Rights Activist who attended a private underground screening of Funny Boy in Colombo.
“Deepa's cinematic language is very strong. It has the potential to go beyond language. In any case, it will be a film that will create a big discussion about Sri Lanka in the future. Anyway the best movie I've ever seen. A good door to start a conversation.” “I watched Funny Boy, Shyam Selvadurai’s iconic Sri Lankan coming-of-age novel, filmed by the equally iconic Deepa Mehta,” says Ashok Ferrey, eminent Sri Lankan writer and novelist. “A film of pathos and charm, poetic and sad, I loved it! The questions put to the director afterwards (by Skype) were interesting in themselves, often revealing more about the questioner than the person questioned. Why did you use non-Tamil actors in Tamil roles? someone asked. ‘Because I chose actors for their ability, not race’, she answered. It would be so limiting if I were to be bound by race. The perfect answer.” “Funny Boy may not be a flawless film, but it’s certainly an important one,” Shehan Karunatilaka, author and previous feature writer for The Guardian, Newsweek, Rolling Stone and the Economic Times. “It's almost four decades since the pogroms of 1983, and this is the first time I've seen it depicted on screen. This is sad, but unsurprising. We haven’t had many apologies or memorials for 1983, and don’t seem likely to. And we don't often do cinema from the point of view of the marginalised. Funny Boy has the power to break silences, and start conversations about justice, race, class, sexuality and our history's many mistakes. It's a picture that all Sri Lankans should see, and that any audience with a heart would enjoy. I hope it encourages more film-makers to turn their cameras on our Sri Lankan past.” 
Image:Funny Boy. Image credit: Twitter handle
“For me, Funny Boy is a quintessentially Canadian story, and could have only been written by a Sri Lankan who had emigrated to Canada,” says Mehta in her press notes, whose work challenges traditions and stereotypes and is always daring, fearless and provocative. “The objectivity that Canada provides, through which we can look at our respective homelands is, I think this country’s greatest gift. It’s what I hope will give us a global understanding of the nature of the ‘Other’.”
The film airs on CBC TV and CBC Gem on December 4, 2020. Toronto, Oct 16 (Canadian-Media): During one of the conversations series organized by the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Geoff Macnaughton of TIFF catches up with Tanishka Maniktala playing Lata, Ishaan Khatter playing Maan, and Tabu playing Saida Bai in the film ‘A Suitable Boy,’ a primetime presentation recipient of the Jeff Skoll Award in Impact Media. The director of the film, Mira Nair’s six-part drama series is an adaptation of Vikram Seth’s famous novel about a young Indian woman's struggle to create a balance between family duty and personal independence in post-partition India. Canadian-Media's Editor/ Director, Asha Bajaj brings you the excerpts:  Ishan with Tabu. Image credit: Reddit.com Geoff to Tanya (Tanishka): Tanya, congratulations on such a wonderful performance. Tell me which characteristics of Lata you were really drawn to when you first read the novel and the script? Can you describe the journey from getting a lead role in the BBC series, to working with Mira, Andrew, Ishaan, Tabu, to showcasing a film in a major film festival? Tanya: I am still reading the novel and have not finished it yet. But even before I started reading it, I had a call with Nita, and we discussed Lata’s character and the story, and I had done an audition. Lata may not be the drop-dead gorgeous girl, but the characteristics that drew me most towards her were her simplicity both in her thoughts and actions, no pretenses, her confidence, her appealing charm, unmoved by the things around her. Being smart, and honest, she lives in her own bubble, has her own thoughts, is well-spoken, and speaks her mind. These characteristics of Lata motivated me to play Lata's character. The journey feels really surreal. I cannot believe I am here. I am doing this with all of you! (laughter)  Tanishka. Image credit: Facebook Page Geoff to Tabu: Tabu, your first international project was Mira’s 2006 film, ‘The Namesake’. What was it like to work with her again? How did you feel working with Mira on set, and what makes her a successful director? Tabu: It felt like we were never away from each other and were just coming back. Mira feels like home and a family within my profession and industry. Coincidently Namesake showed in Toronto, and here we are again with ‘A Suitable Boy’. She is just the same, though with ten times more energy than she had in Namesake. It is always a celebration to work with Mira. When Mira offered me the role of a courtesan in ‘A Suitable Boy’, I stayed on. And then, the project kept getting bigger, and bigger and our family of actors kept getting larger and larger. Even though the courtesan has been an iconic part of Indian society, culture, entertainment, cinema, theater, it was different for me to explore her in new territory with Mira, Vikram, and Andrew and that was the most exciting part. Besides her skills to get people together, she has an eye for talent and brings on board exactly the right people for her project, holds on to her relationships for all her people, she has worked with, for years and years. People have worked with her for 30 years and they are still working with her, and Mira has successfully extracted some great pieces of work. I know that even when I am 80 years old and if I am working in the movies, Mira will definitely work with me (everyone laughs). It is a beautiful thing, to be able to sustain a film family that keeps carrying on and with so much energy. One can totally depend on her aesthetic. I can close my eyes and go into a project and say Mira will take care of everything and will make a beautiful piece of work. Geoff to Ishaan: With this being a period piece, do elements of production and aesthetic, whether it is art direction, or costume, or writing, help you as an actor embody your character? Ishaan: I was very much supported by the elements of authentic production design, the costume, the location of the film, ‘A Suitable Boy’ which transports you, fuels the truth of performance, and reduces your work as an actor for yourself and for the audience. Working with Mira, for the first time, I felt that everybody in the crew was very much in sync, and energized, a tone that the director sets. The thing that struck me in my first meeting with Mira was that she almost felt at par if not more energized than I was about that audition. (laugher) . It was quite striking and true. (cross talk and laughter).  To Ishaan: The relationship between you as Maan and your father played by Ram Kapoor, is one of love and pain, and visible tension between both of you in some of these scenes. Do you think you elevated each other’s performances in those scenes and how? Ishaan: The scenes demanded a lot of collaboration between the two actors. Being an affable person, and a collaborative actor, Ram, who played Mahesh Kapoor, directly informed my performance as Maan, and both Ram and I appear as a real father and son. They have their differences, especially Mann, being a dark horse of the family made it difficult for the father to keep him under the same roof and under control. Though several layers of love, genuine involvement, affection, and empathy are revealed in these six episodes in six hours, the evolution of their relationships is very distinct. #TIFF2020, #Bollywood, # TIFF, #MiraNair, #ASuitablaBoy Toronto, Oct 14 (Canadian-Media): During one of the conversations series organized by the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Geoff Macnaughton, Senior Director, Industry & Theatrical/Lead Programmer, Primetime at TIFF, catches up with Mira Nair, director of ‘A Suitable Boy,’ a primetime presentation recipient of the Jeff Skoll Award in Impact Media. Nair’s six-part drama series is an adaptation from Vikram Seth’s novel about a young Indian woman's struggle to create a balance between family duty and personal independence in post-partition India. Asha Bajaj, Editor/Director of Canadian-Media brings you the excerpts:  Mira Nair. Image credit: Wikipedia Geoff to Mira: Tell us about the first time when you discovered Vikram Seth’s novel. Mira: Vikram Seth is one of our classics and extraordinary writers. I have loved all his works. But I know him as a friend and visited him while he was writing ‘A Suitable Boy' which took him ten years and I was just waiting for it. I read it in 1993 months after it was published. And probably one of the few people that read it back to back twice. It’s a novel that encapsulates free India moments set in 1951 right after independence. It was the time when we as a country and as a people, really struggled to find out how to shake off this extraordinary English influence that we all lived with and to make efforts to find our authentic voices. Seth’s use of humanity, humor, drama, and extraordinary truth actually captured me. But at that time (more than 20 - 30 years back), it was too large for me to consider it as a series. I actually made my smaller version of it in ‘Monsoon Wedding’. But after so many years Seth decided to do a series, and I was very happy to be asked to direct it.  The film 'A Suitable Boy,' Image credit: TIFF How did you and Andrew Davis get to a point in which you were happy with the narrative especially knowing that you are only working with six episodes, versus the wealth of the story that you were pulling from? Mira: I came into the picture after Andrew Davis had written the whole novel in eight episodes. I was quite charmed by the distillation of the whole novel into the eight episodes. But due to financial constraints, we had to reduce these episodes to six hours and it was then that I got involved very muscularly into the choices. At the heart of the tale is a very universal search for a suitable boy by a mother for her unmarried daughter, Lata. India’s first national election was in the same year as ‘A Suitable Boy’ is set. I found a parallel between the search for a suitable boy for Lata and the search for India. Hence the importance of the deep political undertone of the novel. Then also highlighting the characters that sometimes do not speak but are deeply the cornerstone of so much character, for instance, Mrs. Mahesh Kapoor, a deeply religious woman, and Ishan Khattar's mother's character who tries to keep this political family together amidst tumult. The main reason why I agreed to direct the film was Saida Bai, Tabu’s character. I was drawn towards it by the whole culture of the courtesan, the music, the refinement, the art of seduction, and the marginalization of the courtesan in our society. I also come from a tradition of loving that music. I was also drawn to it because of the interwovenness of both Hindu and Muslim languages, and culture. This embodies our descent from such an ancient tradition which is being obliterated today. ‘A Suitable Boy, in all these facets, holds a mirror to our society today. Ishan with Tabu. Image credit: Reddit.com We are very good friends, TIFF and you. We have had a long and strong relationship with one another. Not including this exact moment. Do you have a favorite memory of the festival? Mira: TIFF feels like with my family to me. You have literally seen me right from the beginning with Salaam Bombay and other films. I have several memories. My most cornerstone memory is the extraordinary passion of the audiences. And before the world cinema or global cinema was being celebrated, TIFF always had the eye towards the subcontinent, towards the world. The diversity of the audience of Toronto, so much a part of the rest of the world embraced me. With A Suitable Boy, I was especially energized, because this is my first long-form cinema. I still think of it as a film, not a TV series, it’s 6 hours because that is how I know to think. I was so happy and privileged and surprised to be taken in the embrace as a long-form film, which TIFF has done. I just want to thank the audience of Toronto. Toronto is very special to me for yet another reason. I got married in Toronto, weirdly, a shotgun wedding on the weekend. (laughter) In fact, Deepa Mehta, your other wonderful filmmaker, my Benji, as we say, in a sense was the decorator of my wedding. So my relationship with Toronto is very old and lovely. And it is just so wonderful to be back, even if virtually. Even if we are not Americans anymore. #Bollywood; #RheaChakraborty; #RheaChakrabortyArrested; #SushantSinghRajputDeath Mumbai (India): Bollywood actress Rhea Chakraborty was arrested Sep 8 by officials after three days of questioning by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in connection with the drug abuse case linked to the death of Sushant Singh Rajput, media reports said.  Rhea Chakraborty (right). Image credit: Twitter handle Rhea Chakraborty was interrogated for five hours Sep 8, third day in a row, for six hours on Sep 6 and eight hours on Sep 7. Security was beefed up outside the NCB office where Rhea was being interrogated. Rhea had given about 25 names from Bollywood in the drugs angle, subject to official confirmation. This brings to ten the total number of arrested made so far in the drugs case. Sushant was found dead in his Mumbai residence on June 14. Meanwhile, the actress' brother Showik Chakraborty and Sushant’s house manager Samuel Miranda, who were arrested by the NCB under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, have been remanded to NCB till Sept 9. Dipesh Sawant, the house helper of the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput has also been arrested in connection with the case by the NCB, the third central agency to join the probe into the death of Sushant, after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The NCB started acting after the Enforcement Directorate came across chats regarding drug consumption, procurement, usage and transportation in connection with the Sushant Singh Rajput death case. #SanjjanaaGalrani; #Drugs; #DrugTrafficking; #CCB Bengaluru (India), Sep 8 (Canadian-Media): Bollywood actress, Sanjjanaa Galrani, was arrested Sep 7 by City Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths for alleged drug racketing from the Kannada cinema world, media reports said.  Sanjjanna Galrani. Image credit: Facebook page After raiding Sanjjanaa's house early morning of Sep 7, the CCB team reportedly confiscated certain documents in support of their actions and later arrested the inmate, Sanjjanaa. CCB had also arrested her close associate Rahul, an industrialist in this case. Prior to Galrani's arrest, following the ongoing investigation into the drug peddling in the state, police had already arrested Cine star Ragini, who is presently in police custody. |
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