In a groundbreaking collaboration, the British Film Institute’s UK Global Screen Fund is supporting the production of “ChennaiStory,” an Indo-uk co-production featuring the versatile Shruti Haasan. The film, set to be a cross-cultural romantic comedy, will be directed by BAFTA winner Philip John, known for his remarkable work in the industry.
A Fusion of Languages and Cultures
“ChennaiStory” promises to be a unique cinematic experience, as it is an English-language film interwoven with Tamil and Welsh. Shruti Haasan, a prominent figure in Indian cinema, will lead the cast, bringing her talent to a global audience. Joining her is British star Viveik Kalra, celebrated for his lead role in Gurinder Chadha’s “Blinded By The Light.”
Shruti Haasan Stars In Indo-uk Co-production… BAFTA Winner Philip John To Direct… #ShrutiHaasan will headline #ChennaiStory, an Indo-uk co-production backed by the British Film Institute’s [#BFI] UK Global Screen Fund.#ChennaiStory – a cross-cultural rom-com – is an #English…...
A Fusion of Languages and Cultures
“ChennaiStory” promises to be a unique cinematic experience, as it is an English-language film interwoven with Tamil and Welsh. Shruti Haasan, a prominent figure in Indian cinema, will lead the cast, bringing her talent to a global audience. Joining her is British star Viveik Kalra, celebrated for his lead role in Gurinder Chadha’s “Blinded By The Light.”
Shruti Haasan Stars In Indo-uk Co-production… BAFTA Winner Philip John To Direct… #ShrutiHaasan will headline #ChennaiStory, an Indo-uk co-production backed by the British Film Institute’s [#BFI] UK Global Screen Fund.#ChennaiStory – a cross-cultural rom-com – is an #English…...
- 1/24/2024
- by Anshu Harvansh
- ReferSMS
Actress Shruti Haasan will headline India-uk film co-production ‘Chennai Story’. She said that she is all ready to take forward a culturally-rooted story to an international audience.
Shruti said: “Hailing from Chennai, a story showing the diversity and uniqueness of Chennai is so special to me – collaborating with Phil is something I’m so excited to experience, telling global and rooted stories through international collaboration is what making cinema is all about. I’m all up for Sunitha Tati’s vision of taking a culturally-rooted story to an international audience through ‘Chennai Story’.”
Shruti, who is also a renowned musician, has acting credits across India’s various language film industries. In 2023, she was one of the leads in “Salaar,” one of India’s biggest hits of the year, and led British thriller ‘The Eye’. In 2019, she had a key role in US series ‘Treadstone’, reports Variety.
Adapted from Timeri N. Murari...
Shruti said: “Hailing from Chennai, a story showing the diversity and uniqueness of Chennai is so special to me – collaborating with Phil is something I’m so excited to experience, telling global and rooted stories through international collaboration is what making cinema is all about. I’m all up for Sunitha Tati’s vision of taking a culturally-rooted story to an international audience through ‘Chennai Story’.”
Shruti, who is also a renowned musician, has acting credits across India’s various language film industries. In 2023, she was one of the leads in “Salaar,” one of India’s biggest hits of the year, and led British thriller ‘The Eye’. In 2019, she had a key role in US series ‘Treadstone’, reports Variety.
Adapted from Timeri N. Murari...
- 1/24/2024
- by Agency News Desk
- GlamSham
Indian star Shruti Haasan will headline India-u.K. film co-production “Chennai Story.”
Haasan, who is also a renowned musician, has acting credits across India’s various language film industries and in the U.S. and U.K. In 2023, she was one of the leads in “Salaar,” one of India’s biggest hits of the year, and led British thriller “The Eye.” In 2019, she had a key role in USA series “Treadstone.”
Adapted from Timeri N. Murari’s bestselling 2004 novel “The Arrangements of Love,” “Chennai Story” is a coming-of-age romantic comedy set against the backdrop of Wales and India where Haasan takes on the pivotal role of Anu, a spunky private detective. The role was previously supposed to be played by Samantha Ruth Prabhu who is now taking a year’s sabbatical due to health reasons. The cast also includes Viveik Kalra, who was the lead in “Blinded by the Light...
Haasan, who is also a renowned musician, has acting credits across India’s various language film industries and in the U.S. and U.K. In 2023, she was one of the leads in “Salaar,” one of India’s biggest hits of the year, and led British thriller “The Eye.” In 2019, she had a key role in USA series “Treadstone.”
Adapted from Timeri N. Murari’s bestselling 2004 novel “The Arrangements of Love,” “Chennai Story” is a coming-of-age romantic comedy set against the backdrop of Wales and India where Haasan takes on the pivotal role of Anu, a spunky private detective. The role was previously supposed to be played by Samantha Ruth Prabhu who is now taking a year’s sabbatical due to health reasons. The cast also includes Viveik Kalra, who was the lead in “Blinded by the Light...
- 1/24/2024
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
A TV documentary titled Barbie Uncovered and an adaptation of Homer’s classic The Odyssey starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche are among the titles to receive cash during the latest round of U.K. Global Screen Fund awards.
Financed through the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms), the latest round handed out over £1.2 million in cash awards through the fund’s International Co-production strand, supporting UK producers to work as partners on international co-productions. To date, the strand has now awarded over £5 million to 33 co-productions.
This latest round of awards sees the UK co-producing with 12 territories and will be the first time the fund has supported collaborations with India and Finland. The funding will also support partnerships with Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, France, Italy, Greece, Germany, Ireland, Canada, and New Zealand.
TV doc Barbie Uncovered is an unofficial majority UK co-production with New Zealand. The UK...
Financed through the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms), the latest round handed out over £1.2 million in cash awards through the fund’s International Co-production strand, supporting UK producers to work as partners on international co-productions. To date, the strand has now awarded over £5 million to 33 co-productions.
This latest round of awards sees the UK co-producing with 12 territories and will be the first time the fund has supported collaborations with India and Finland. The funding will also support partnerships with Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, France, Italy, Greece, Germany, Ireland, Canada, and New Zealand.
TV doc Barbie Uncovered is an unofficial majority UK co-production with New Zealand. The UK...
- 7/25/2023
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
TV documentary “Barbie Uncovered” and an adaptation of Homer’s “The Odyssey” starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche are among the latest projects awarded by the U.K. Global Screen Fund.
On “Barbie Uncovered,” an unofficial majority U.K. co-production with New Zealand, the U.K. producers are Ross Wilson from Rw Productions and Alan Clements from Two Media Rivers who will co-produce with New Zealand’s Daniel Story and Cass Avery from Augusto. It will be directed by Eddie Hutton-Mills and focuses on the unknown history of the global icon Barbie and the dramatic and dark story behind the creation of the world’s most famous doll.
On “The Odyssey” adaptation “The Return,” a minority U.K. co-production with Italy, Greece and France made under the European Convention, the U.K. producers are James Clayton and Uberto Pasolini from Red Wave Films who will co‐produce with Italy’s...
On “Barbie Uncovered,” an unofficial majority U.K. co-production with New Zealand, the U.K. producers are Ross Wilson from Rw Productions and Alan Clements from Two Media Rivers who will co-produce with New Zealand’s Daniel Story and Cass Avery from Augusto. It will be directed by Eddie Hutton-Mills and focuses on the unknown history of the global icon Barbie and the dramatic and dark story behind the creation of the world’s most famous doll.
On “The Odyssey” adaptation “The Return,” a minority U.K. co-production with Italy, Greece and France made under the European Convention, the U.K. producers are James Clayton and Uberto Pasolini from Red Wave Films who will co‐produce with Italy’s...
- 7/25/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
‘Blinded By The Light’ Star Viveik Kalra Joins Samantha Ruth Prabhu In Rom-Com ‘Chennai Story’ — EFM
Exclusive: Viveik Kalra, star of Gurinder Chadha’s Sundance 2019 musical Blinded By The Light, has been set to co-star with Indian superstar Samantha Ruth Prabhu in cross-cultural rom-com Chennai Story.
The UK and India-set film will follow Nikhil (Kalra), a working-class South Asian Welshman, who following the death of his mother, travels to his ancestral homeland in Chennai, India, to locate his estranged father. In Chennai he encounters Anu (Ruth Prabhu), a street-smart private detective whom he hires to assist with his quest. More accustomed to fish and chips than authentic Masala Dosa, the frantic, colorful new world sweeps Nikhil off his feet, as does his undeniable chemistry with Anu which drives them closer together and on a collision course with her conservative parents.
Philip John (Downton Abbey) is directing the project, written by Nimmi Harasgama and Philip John and based on novel The Arrangements of Love by Timeri N. Murari...
The UK and India-set film will follow Nikhil (Kalra), a working-class South Asian Welshman, who following the death of his mother, travels to his ancestral homeland in Chennai, India, to locate his estranged father. In Chennai he encounters Anu (Ruth Prabhu), a street-smart private detective whom he hires to assist with his quest. More accustomed to fish and chips than authentic Masala Dosa, the frantic, colorful new world sweeps Nikhil off his feet, as does his undeniable chemistry with Anu which drives them closer together and on a collision course with her conservative parents.
Philip John (Downton Abbey) is directing the project, written by Nimmi Harasgama and Philip John and based on novel The Arrangements of Love by Timeri N. Murari...
- 2/16/2023
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Metro International is launching sales at the AFM on Guru Films’ cross-cultural rom-com Chennai Story starring Indian superstar Samantha Ruth Prabhu.
The UK and India-set film will follow Nikhil, a working-class South Asian Welshman, who following the death of his mother, travels to his ancestral homeland in Chennai, India, to locate his estranged father. In Chennai he encounters Anu (Ruth Prabhu), a street-smart private detective whom he hires to assist with his quest. More accustomed to fish and chips than authentic Masala Dosa, this frantic, colorful new world sweeps Nikhil off his feet, as does his undeniable chemistry with Anu which drives them closer together and on a collision course with her conservative parents. Additional casting is underway.
As previously announced, the film will be directed by BAFTA winner Philip John (Downton Abbey), written by Nimmi Harasgama and Philip John, and is based on novel The Arrangements of Love...
The UK and India-set film will follow Nikhil, a working-class South Asian Welshman, who following the death of his mother, travels to his ancestral homeland in Chennai, India, to locate his estranged father. In Chennai he encounters Anu (Ruth Prabhu), a street-smart private detective whom he hires to assist with his quest. More accustomed to fish and chips than authentic Masala Dosa, this frantic, colorful new world sweeps Nikhil off his feet, as does his undeniable chemistry with Anu which drives them closer together and on a collision course with her conservative parents. Additional casting is underway.
As previously announced, the film will be directed by BAFTA winner Philip John (Downton Abbey), written by Nimmi Harasgama and Philip John, and is based on novel The Arrangements of Love...
- 11/3/2022
- by Andreas Wiseman
- Deadline Film + TV
The old president has fled, the new one is just as unpopular, and a state of emergency is in place as Sri Lanka weathers the worst economic crisis in its history.
The island nation known as the pearl of the Indian Ocean — where films like “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “Tarzan, the Ape Man” and “The Bridge on the River Kwai” were shot on location — has been through some extraordinary times in recent weeks.
In the last year, the government’s economic mismanagement has precipitated a foreign currency and agricultural crisis that has led to shortages of medicine, fuel and basic food staples amid a 50 rise in inflation. The country declared bankruptcy earlier this month. While the impact to local film and TV production isn’t high on the priority list amid a looming famine, Sri Lankan industry insiders say it will take years for the creative sector to recover.
The island nation known as the pearl of the Indian Ocean — where films like “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “Tarzan, the Ape Man” and “The Bridge on the River Kwai” were shot on location — has been through some extraordinary times in recent weeks.
In the last year, the government’s economic mismanagement has precipitated a foreign currency and agricultural crisis that has led to shortages of medicine, fuel and basic food staples amid a 50 rise in inflation. The country declared bankruptcy earlier this month. While the impact to local film and TV production isn’t high on the priority list amid a looming famine, Sri Lankan industry insiders say it will take years for the creative sector to recover.
- 7/22/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Samantha Ruth Prabhu, one of India’s top actors, has boarded the cast of feature film “Arrangements of Love.”
The film is to be directed by BAFTA-winning Welsh director Philip John, whose credits include “Downton Abbey” and “The Good Karma Hospital.”
The film is produced by Sunitha Tati’s Indian outfit Guru Films, whose “Oh! Baby,” the 2019 Telugu-language adaptation of 2014 Korean film “Miss Granny,” was a commercial success. “Oh! Baby” starred Samantha, who is known by just her first name.
The actor won much acclaim for her antagonist’s role in the second season of Amazon Prime Video series “Family Man,” which began streaming earlier this year. Active in both the Telugu and Tamil language industries, Samantha’s credits include S.S. Rajamouli’s “Eega,” “Super Deluxe,” “Janatha Garage” and “Mersal.”
Samir Sarkar, of Singapore’s Magic Hour Films, has joined the project as executive producer. Sarkar previously produced Rotterdam winner “Nasir,...
The film is to be directed by BAFTA-winning Welsh director Philip John, whose credits include “Downton Abbey” and “The Good Karma Hospital.”
The film is produced by Sunitha Tati’s Indian outfit Guru Films, whose “Oh! Baby,” the 2019 Telugu-language adaptation of 2014 Korean film “Miss Granny,” was a commercial success. “Oh! Baby” starred Samantha, who is known by just her first name.
The actor won much acclaim for her antagonist’s role in the second season of Amazon Prime Video series “Family Man,” which began streaming earlier this year. Active in both the Telugu and Tamil language industries, Samantha’s credits include S.S. Rajamouli’s “Eega,” “Super Deluxe,” “Janatha Garage” and “Mersal.”
Samir Sarkar, of Singapore’s Magic Hour Films, has joined the project as executive producer. Sarkar previously produced Rotterdam winner “Nasir,...
- 11/26/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
BAFTA-winning Welsh director Philip John, whose credits include “Downton Abbey” and “The Good Karma Hospital,” will direct “Arrangements of Love,” the sole Asian project selected at the Toronto International Financing Forum, which sits alongside the Toronto film festival.
The film is an adaptation of the bestselling 2004 novel of the same title by Indian author Timeri N. Murari (“The Taliban Cricket Club”) by John and British Sri Lankan actor Nimmi Harasgama, who played the female lead in Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” and is a series regular on “The Good Karma Hospital.”
“Arrangements of Love” follows a Welsh-Indian man on his quest to find his estranged father with an impromptu visit to his homeland.
“’The Arrangements of Love’ is an intricate and subtle exploration of love; quirky and oddball it tells of the characters all looking for something – and hidden under their stories is the search for love, in its many guises,...
The film is an adaptation of the bestselling 2004 novel of the same title by Indian author Timeri N. Murari (“The Taliban Cricket Club”) by John and British Sri Lankan actor Nimmi Harasgama, who played the female lead in Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” and is a series regular on “The Good Karma Hospital.”
“Arrangements of Love” follows a Welsh-Indian man on his quest to find his estranged father with an impromptu visit to his homeland.
“’The Arrangements of Love’ is an intricate and subtle exploration of love; quirky and oddball it tells of the characters all looking for something – and hidden under their stories is the search for love, in its many guises,...
- 8/30/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
“Don’t mess with the grand diva,” says 8-year-old Arjie, usually in private or under his breath, to a world determined to mess with him from all sides. Taught to him by an understanding, open-minded aunt, it’s a self-defense mantra that sees him through various forms of bullying as he comes to terms with his nascent homosexuality — no easy cross to bear in a conservative Sri Lankan household through the 1970s and 1980s.
It’s of less use, however, when his life is more violently rocked by the first bloody stirrings of the Sri Lankan Civil War: Both gay and Tamil, young Arjie is a doubly imperiled minority. Adapted from Shyam Selvadurai’s well-regarded semi-autobiographical novel, Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” ambitiously braids internal and external conflict, familial and national strife, to engrossing if somewhat heavily condensed effect. Selected as Canada’s official Oscar entry, it’s the Indo-Canadian...
It’s of less use, however, when his life is more violently rocked by the first bloody stirrings of the Sri Lankan Civil War: Both gay and Tamil, young Arjie is a doubly imperiled minority. Adapted from Shyam Selvadurai’s well-regarded semi-autobiographical novel, Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” ambitiously braids internal and external conflict, familial and national strife, to engrossing if somewhat heavily condensed effect. Selected as Canada’s official Oscar entry, it’s the Indo-Canadian...
- 12/10/2020
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
"Every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other..." Array has debuted the first official trailer for Funny Boy, the latest film from acclaimed Indo-Canadian filmmaker Deepa Mehta. This is premiering directly on Netflix in December, and has been chosen by Canada as their entry into the Best International Film category at the Academy Awards for 2020. Shot on location and set in Sri Lanka in the 1970s and 80s, the film explores Arjie's sexual awakening from a young boy to a teenager who falls in love with a male classmate at his school, just as political tensions escalate between the Sinhalese and Tamils in the years leading up to the 1983 uprisings. The indie film stars Arush Nand, Brandon Ingram, Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi, Seema Biswas, & Shivantha Wijesinha. It looks wonderful, and also heartbreaking, but still a ...
- 11/1/2020
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Acquired by Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing earlier this month, Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy,” an adaptation of Shyam Selvadurai’s 1994 novel of the same name, has been announced as Canada’s official selection for Best International Feature Film for the 2021 Academy Awards. Set for release on Netflix beginning Thursday, December 10, Array has premiered a first-look trailer for the film.
Shot on location in Colombo, Sri Lanka, “Funny Boy” centers on the “awakening of sexual identity by a young boy named Arjie. As political tensions escalate to a boiling point between the minority Tamils and the majority Sinhalese, a young boy comes of age in a society and family that doesn’t embrace difference outside of societal norms. The film chronicles Arjie’s struggle to find balance and self-love despite the absence of empathy and understanding.”
It’s a coming-of-age story about growing up in Sri Lanka during one of...
Shot on location in Colombo, Sri Lanka, “Funny Boy” centers on the “awakening of sexual identity by a young boy named Arjie. As political tensions escalate to a boiling point between the minority Tamils and the majority Sinhalese, a young boy comes of age in a society and family that doesn’t embrace difference outside of societal norms. The film chronicles Arjie’s struggle to find balance and self-love despite the absence of empathy and understanding.”
It’s a coming-of-age story about growing up in Sri Lanka during one of...
- 10/30/2020
- by Tambay Obenson
- Indiewire
Coming-of-age story will premiere on Netflix outside Canada on December 10.
Canada has selected Deepa Mehta’s coming-of-age drama Funny Boy as its submission for the Oscar international feature film category.
Mehta, whose Water was the Canadian Oscar submission in 2007, co-wrote the feature with Shyam Selvadurai based on the latter’s novel about a gay boy growing up in Sri Lanka during the Tamil-Sinhalese conflict.
Brandon Ingram makes his feature film debut alongside Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi, and Arush Nand. David Hamilton and Hussain Amarshi served as producers.
The film was one of 11 submissions. Telefilm Canada coordinates and chairs...
Canada has selected Deepa Mehta’s coming-of-age drama Funny Boy as its submission for the Oscar international feature film category.
Mehta, whose Water was the Canadian Oscar submission in 2007, co-wrote the feature with Shyam Selvadurai based on the latter’s novel about a gay boy growing up in Sri Lanka during the Tamil-Sinhalese conflict.
Brandon Ingram makes his feature film debut alongside Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi, and Arush Nand. David Hamilton and Hussain Amarshi served as producers.
The film was one of 11 submissions. Telefilm Canada coordinates and chairs...
- 10/29/2020
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
Canada has picked Deepa Mehta’s Funny Boy, an adaptation of Shyam Selvadurai’s coming-of-age novel of the same name, to represent the country in the 2021 Oscar race in the international feature category.
Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing has already sold the Sri Lanka-set drama to Netflix for a Dec. 10 bow. The indie, which stars Brandon Ingram, Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi and Arush Nand, will also bypass movie theaters are it premieres on the CBC network in Canada on Dec. 4.
Shot on location in Sri Lanka and set in the 1970s and ’80s, Funny Boy portrays a ...
Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing has already sold the Sri Lanka-set drama to Netflix for a Dec. 10 bow. The indie, which stars Brandon Ingram, Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi and Arush Nand, will also bypass movie theaters are it premieres on the CBC network in Canada on Dec. 4.
Shot on location in Sri Lanka and set in the 1970s and ’80s, Funny Boy portrays a ...
- 10/29/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
Canada has picked Deepa Mehta’s Funny Boy, an adaptation of Shyam Selvadurai’s coming-of-age novel of the same name, to represent the country in the 2021 Oscar race in the international feature category.
Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing has already sold the Sri Lanka-set drama to Netflix for a Dec. 10 bow. The indie, which stars Brandon Ingram, Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi and Arush Nand, will also bypass movie theaters are it premieres on the CBC network in Canada on Dec. 4.
Shot on location in Sri Lanka and set in the 1970s and ’80s, Funny Boy portrays a ...
Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing has already sold the Sri Lanka-set drama to Netflix for a Dec. 10 bow. The indie, which stars Brandon Ingram, Nimmi Harasgama, Ali Kazmi, Agam Darshi and Arush Nand, will also bypass movie theaters are it premieres on the CBC network in Canada on Dec. 4.
Shot on location in Sri Lanka and set in the 1970s and ’80s, Funny Boy portrays a ...
- 10/29/2020
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy” is heading to the CBC.
The Canadian public broadcaster, whose film division CBC Films funded the feature with Telefilm Canada, has lined up a Dec. 4 premiere. Based on the eponymous, best-selling novel by Shyam Selvadurai, the film follows a young boy’s sexual awakening in Sri Lanka during the turbulent Tamil-Sinhalese conflict leading up to the civil war. Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing picked up the film for distribution earlier this month.
“Funny Boy” will air on CBC on Dec. 4 at 8 p.m. and will be available to stream on the broadcaster’s VOD service CBC Gem. It will also receive a theatrical release in Canada, as well as select cities throughout the U.S. in December. As revealed exclusively by Variety, the film will premiere on Netflix in the U.S., U.K., New Zealand and Australia on Dec. 10.
Shot on location in Colombo,...
The Canadian public broadcaster, whose film division CBC Films funded the feature with Telefilm Canada, has lined up a Dec. 4 premiere. Based on the eponymous, best-selling novel by Shyam Selvadurai, the film follows a young boy’s sexual awakening in Sri Lanka during the turbulent Tamil-Sinhalese conflict leading up to the civil war. Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing picked up the film for distribution earlier this month.
“Funny Boy” will air on CBC on Dec. 4 at 8 p.m. and will be available to stream on the broadcaster’s VOD service CBC Gem. It will also receive a theatrical release in Canada, as well as select cities throughout the U.S. in December. As revealed exclusively by Variety, the film will premiere on Netflix in the U.S., U.K., New Zealand and Australia on Dec. 10.
Shot on location in Colombo,...
- 10/27/2020
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
Deepa Mehta’s latest film, an adaptation of Shyam Selvadurai’s Sri Lanka-set coming-of-age novel “Funny Boy,” has been picked up by Ava DuVernay’s Array Releasing, and will land on Netflix this December, Variety can reveal.
The Oscar-nominated “Earth” and “Midnight’s Children” director wrote the screenplay for the film alongside Selvadurai, whose debut 1994 novel is set in Sri Lanka during the 1970s and 1980s and was ground-breaking in its discussion of identity politics against the backdrop of escalating conflict between the island nation’s Sinhalese majority and Tamil minority.
Shot on location in Colombo, the film explores Tamil protagonist Arjie’s (Arush Nand/Brandon Ingram) sexual awakening from a young boy, deemed “funny” by disapproving family, to a teenager enamoured by a male classmate, just as political tensions escalate between the Sinhalese and Tamils in the years leading up to the 1983 uprisings — violence that led into a 26-year civil war.
The Oscar-nominated “Earth” and “Midnight’s Children” director wrote the screenplay for the film alongside Selvadurai, whose debut 1994 novel is set in Sri Lanka during the 1970s and 1980s and was ground-breaking in its discussion of identity politics against the backdrop of escalating conflict between the island nation’s Sinhalese majority and Tamil minority.
Shot on location in Colombo, the film explores Tamil protagonist Arjie’s (Arush Nand/Brandon Ingram) sexual awakening from a young boy, deemed “funny” by disapproving family, to a teenager enamoured by a male classmate, just as political tensions escalate between the Sinhalese and Tamils in the years leading up to the 1983 uprisings — violence that led into a 26-year civil war.
- 10/15/2020
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
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