The Indian Panorama

Tag: Madhu

  • AFF AT NYC’S BARNARD COLLEGE PRESENTS ITS SHOWCASE @ 13

    By Mabel Pais

    Featuring

    My Name is Andrea (Credit / Athena Film Fest 2023)

    Pratibha’s Parmar’s MY NAME IS ANDREA

    Madhu (Honey) (Credit / Athena Film Fest 2023)

    Tanmay Chowdhary and Tanvi Chowdhary’s HONEY (MADHU)

    Look Like You (Credit / Athena Film Fest 2023)

    Snigdha Kapoor’s LOOK LIKE YOU

    Missing (Credit / Athena Film Fest 2023)

    Co-Producer Aneesh Chaganty’s MISSING

     and more

    The Athena Film Festival (AFF) at the Barnard College campus, New York City presents its 13th annual showcase, March 2-5, 2023. This is a joint partnership between Barnard’s Athena Center for Leadership and the initiative Women and Hollywood.

    The annual festival includes film screenings, in-depth conversations and panels with filmmakers and industry experts, a series of programs that support the pipeline of women creatives, and a wide variety of events focused on celebrating and amplifying the stories of bold, courageous women leaders.

    “Entering the 13th year of the Athena Film Festival I could not feel more proud of the unique and exciting slate of films we are sharing with our audiences this year. We look forward to bringing these important and underrepresented voices to the big screen,” said Melissa Silverstein, Co-Founder and Artistic Director of AFF and Founder of Women and Hollywood.

    “The narratives we see shape our understanding of the world,” said Umbeen Bhatti, Constance Hess Williams ’66 Director of Barnard’s Athena Center for Leadership. “At the Athena Film Festival, audiences won’t encounter tired, outdated narratives, but rather, narratives that more accurately reflect the world we live in and the future we want to build.”

    SCHEDULE & UPDATES

    For the film schedule & regular updates, visit aff23.eventive.org/schedule.

    TICKETS

    Passes and tickets for the 2023 Athena Film Festival are available at athenafilmfestival.com.

    NARRATIVES

    Angry Annie (Annie Colère)

    France l Director: Blandine Lenoir l Writers: Blandine Lenoir and Axelle Robert

    Producers: Aurora Films, Local Films

    Daughter of Rage (La Hija de Todas las Rabias)

    New York Premiere l Nicaragua l Director/Writer: Laura Baumeister de Montis l Producers: Martha Orozco, Laura Baumeister de Montis, Rossana Baumeister, and Bruna Haddad

    Fogaréu

    Brazil, France l Director: Flávia Neves l Writers: Melanie Dimantas and Flávia Neves l Producers: Mayra Faour Auad, Vania Catani, and Thomas Sparfel

    My Emptiness and I (Mi vacío y yo)

    Spain l Director: Adrián Silvestre l Writers: Raphaëlle Pérez, Adrián Silvestre, and Carlos Marques-Marcet l Producers: Testamento and Alba Sotorra

    Missing

    United States l Directors/Writers: Nick Johnson and Will Merrick l Producers: Aneesh Chaganty, Sev Ohanian, and Natalie Qasabian

    Moving On

    United States l Director/Writer: Paul Weitz l Producers: Paul Weitz, Stephanie Meurer, Andrew Miano, Chris Parker, and Dylan Sellers

    Rachel Hendrix

    United States l Director/Writer: Victor Nuñez l Producer: Heidi Levitt

    The Lost King

    New York Premiere l United Kingdom l Director: Stephen Frears

    Writers: Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope l Producers: Steve Coogan, Christine Langan, and Dan Winch

    Vera Dreams of the Sea

    Kosovo l Director: Kaltrina Krasniqi l Writer: Doruntina Basha l Producer: Shkumbin Istrefi

    DOCUMENTARIES

    Body Parts

    United States l Director: Kristy Guevara-Flanagan l Producer: Helen Hood Scheer

    Black Mothers Love and Resist

    United States l Director/Writer: Débora Souza Silva l Producers: Débora Souza Silva, David Felix Sutcliffe, Adina Luo, and Loi Ameera Almeron

    Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On

    Canada l Director: Madison Thomas l Writers: Andrea Warner and Madison Thomas l Producer: Stephen Paniccia

    Category: Woman

    Canada l Director/Writer: Phyllis Ellis l Producers: Phyllis Ellis and Howard Fraiberg

    Esther Newton Made Me Gay

    United States l Director: Jean Carlomusto l Producers: Jean Carlomusto and Shanti Avirgan

    The Fire That Took Her

    United States l Director: Patricia Gillespie l Producers: Julie Goldman, Kristi Jacobson, Carolyn Hepburn, Christopher Clements, and Tracy Elizabeth Jarrett

    Jeannette

    United States l Director: Maris Curran l Producer: Jon Coplon

    Judy Blume Forever

    United States l Directors/Producers: Davina Pardo and Leah Wolchok l Producers: Sara Bernstein, Marcella Steingar, and Justin Wilkes

    Mama Bears

    United States l Director: Daresha Kyi l Producer: Laura Tatham

    My Name Is Andrea

    United States l Director: Pratibha Parmar l Producer: Shaheen Haq

    Queen of the Deuce

    Canada, Greece l Director: Valerie Kontakos l Writers: Christos Asteriou, Valerie Kontakos, and Despina Pavlaki l Producers: Ed Barreveld, Valerie Kontakos, and Despina Pavlaki

    SHORTS

    CANS Can’t Stand

    United States l Directors: Matt Nadel and Megan Plotka l Producer: Matt Nadel

    El Carrito

    United States l Director/Writer: Zahida Pirani l Producers: Zahida Pirani, Mauricio Piratova, and Ran Yan

    The Feeling of Being Close to You (能靠近你的感觉)

    Singapore/United States l Director/Writer/Producer: Ash Goh Hua

    Glazing

    New York Premiere l United States l Director/Writer/Producer: Lilli Carré

    Honey (Madhu)

    India l Directors: Tanmay Chowdhary and Tanvi Chowdhary l Writer: Tanvi Chowdhary l Producer: Sue-Ellen Chitunya

    Lilith’s Eve

    United Kingdom l Director: Sam de Ceccatty l Writers: Manon Ardisson and Sam de Ceccatty l Producer: Manon Ardisson

    Long Line of Ladies

    United States l Directors: Rayka Zehtabchi and Shaandiin Tome l Producers: Garrett Schiff, Rayka Zehtabchi, Sam Davis, and Pimm Tripp-Allen

    Look Like You

    United States l Director/Writer: Snigdha Kapoor l Producers: Pulkit Datta and Lauren Sowa

    Love, Barbara

    United States l Director: Brydie O’Connor l Writers: Brydie O’Connor and Matt Hixon l Producers: Brydie O’Connor and Myriam Schroeter

    The Panola Project

    United States l Directors/Writers: Rachael DeCruz and Jeremy S. Levine l Producers: Rachael DeCruz, Jeremy S. Levine, and Melissa Fajardo

    United States l Directors: Shenny De Los Angeles and Maria Marrone l Writer/Producer: Shenny De Los Angeles

    Still Waters

    United States l Director/Writer: Aurora Brachman l Producer: Mariales Diaz

    Talk Black

    United States l Director/Writer: Destiny Macon l Producers: Destiny Macon, Jonathan Baty, Brad Jayne, Kisha Imani Cameron, and Smitha Lee

     To Wade or Row

    United States l Director/Writer: Rebecca van der Meulen l Producers: Leanne Macaione and Dina Barossi

    THE ANTHEM FILM ESTIVAL

    Learn more at athenafilmfestival.com.

    THE ATHENA CENTER AT BARNARD COLLEGE

    Learn more at athenacenter.barnard.edu.

    WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD

    Learn more at womenandhollywood.com.

    BARNARD COLLEGE

    Learn more at barnard.edu.

    ARTEMIS RISING FOUNDATION

    Learn more at artemisrising.org

    (Mabel Pais writes on Social Issues, The Arts and Entertainment, Health & Wellness, Cuisine and Spirituality)

  • The Promise I could not Keep

    The Promise I could not Keep

    Indrajit S Saluja

    My mother, Mohinder Kaur, kept telling me over the phone from India” You will not come to see me. You are too busy”. And each time, I tried to convince her that I would. And she would take a deep sigh and say “Yes, after I am gone”. We were separated for over 7 years during which I did not visit her. I came to the US in 2003, and a quirk of events did not allow me to visit India for the next more than 7years.   It was only in November 2010 that I got my Green Card and was comfortable visiting India.

    Somewhere in the beginning of 2010 my mother fell sick which compelled her to curtail her physical activity. Given to an active life which saw her keeping herself busy in domestic chores, she was suddenly pushed into inactivity which made her over the months sicker despite the fact that she was being well looked after by my son Ashish and his wife Madhu. My daughter Jaskiran was very fond of her grandmother, and the grandmother and granddaughter immensely enjoyed each other’s company. My youngest son Chitagam, a very naughty child, of whom my mother was very fond, missed her after joining me in the US. He would often tell me that he would go to see Mataji (my mother was called Mata ji by all children) as soon as he got his Green Card. And that’s what he did. As soon as he got his Green Card in November 2010, he flew to India in early 2011 to be by the side of his ailing grandmother. It did make Mata ji happy. But she was not satisfied with his presence alone. She wanted her most loved son (I am the eldest child in her family) to be with her.

    By January 2011, Mata ji got sicker. Lack of physical movements took a toll on her health. She grew week, and ultimately was confined to bed. Agam took good care of his grandmother as did my eldest son Ashish and his wife Madhu. But the old woman, now 93, longed to see her son she loved the most among her 7 children.

    And, here I was, stuck in work. The Indian Panorama was in competition with many other desi newspapers, some with enormous resources, and it required truly hard and dedicated work to survive. With my eyes fixed on the New Year edition, which for all desi newspapers is an occasion to rake in a few extra dollars and draw the attention of the community, I said to myself: “Well, Agam is there looking after Mata Ji. Let me finish with the New year edition, and then the Republic Day edition towards the end of January, I will then have enough time to spend with her.”

    I told Mata ji about my travel plans. She listened calmly, and then commented: “You will have something important coming up again after the Republic Day”. I assured her that nothing would stop me from visiting her after I was done with the Republic Day.

    Now, the month of April is significant for the Sikhs. Around the middle of April falls the Vaisakhi, which is the day of creation of Khalsa (birthday of the Sikhs) by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699. It is a great occasion, celebrated with enthusiasm in the great City of New York when the Sikh community from adjoining States throngs in thousands to participate in an iconic Sikh Day Parade. As any other newspaper publication having readership among the Sikh community, views the historic event as an opportunity to promote itself, The Indian Panorama also saw and wished to exploit the opportunity. So, I decided that I will visit India in May. Why in May? One, I will be comparatively free until June end, and will be able to spend more time with Mata ji. Two, May 8 happens to be my wedding day, and I will be with the family to recall the wonderful day the family spent together when my wife was alive. By the way, my wife, Gurdarshan Kaur, who married me for love in 1977, died fighting multiple ailments in 2007, while I was away in the US.

    So, to Mataji’s question somewhere in January 2011 when I was planning a visit home, I said that my visit was delayed and that I would see her in May. I vividly remember her disappointment. She was silent for a while, and then said, “As you like it. Stay blessed”.  I could understand her pain. I tried all verbal jugglery and sophistry to convince her that it was a genuine compulsion for me to delay my trip to India, and that I would certainly see her in May. She listened calmly. She did not interrupt me in my long explanation, and assurances that I would soon be seeing her in May. And then, she said, it is January, and you want to visit me in May. How many months? Do you call it soon? I may not be here when you come. I know you will come but only after I am gone”.

    Till today, I haven’t forgotten her words. She must have felt cheated when I did not join her in early May. My hollow promises to visit her could not provide her any more oxygen. She lost hope and the desire to breathe. She decided it was an endless wait. So, on May 2, 2011, she bade goodbye to the world.

    Mata ji, I haven’t forgiven myself for causing you disappointment and pain. Sometimes, I feel, I am responsible for forcing you into yourend. Please forgive me. You loved me so much. You have been my mother and my God. I miss you, and that’s why I often turn to your portrait hung above the headboard of my bed, and speak with you, and I believe, you hear me as patiently as you did when I told you I would come soon, but now you don’t answer. You don’t say any more “I know you will come after I am gone” You were so prophetic. But let me tell you, and very honestly this time, that though I am not sure when, I will certainly come and see you.

     Love you Mata ji.

  • Indian American couple goes skiing in traditional Indian outfits, video leaves internet ‘impressed’

    Indian American couple goes skiing in traditional Indian outfits, video leaves internet ‘impressed’

    CHICAGO (TIP): Divya and Madhu left the internet stunned as they skied wearing a saree and a dhoti in sub-zero temperatures. While Divya wore a blue sari over leggings and a pullover, Madhu was seen wearing a dhoti before hitting the slopes. Clips of Divya and Madhu have thousands impressed on social media. The video was shared last month by Divya on her Instagram account, but it recently caught internet’s attention. The videos show the two in their gear with traditional Indian outfits while skiing on the slopes of Welch village-a ski area in Minnesota. The two were seen going down the snow-covered slopes with ease. “We needed to do something really crazy today to distract ourselves!” wrote Divya while sharing the footage on Instagram. The video has racked up over 25,000 ‘likes’ and hundreds of impressed comments. “Love this. Saree and panache game strong,” wrote one person in the comments section. “Wow! Seriously impressive. How did you learn to ski like that?” another asked.