Tarsem Singh’s tale of forbidden romance “Dear Jassi” has been set as the opening title of the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles.
The event, which runs June 27-30, will showcase seven feature films, a new industry section and a female-centric collection of South Asian short films. It will close with close with the Los Angeles premiere of Nithilan Saminathan’s Tamil-language film “Maharaja,” which is a twisted revenge saga starring Vijay Sethupathi and filmmaker-actor Anurag Kashyap playing the villain.
IFFLA’S opening and closing galas will take place at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills. All but one of the other screenings will be held at Landmark Theatres Sunset.
Singh, a consummate stylist now also known as Tarsem Singh Dhandwar, is renown for his Hollywood fantasy films “The Fall” and “The Cell.” Inspired by real events, “Dear Jassi” represents a change of pace. It follows a Canadian-born Indian girl who falls in love with a rickshaw driver from a lower social class. Following their instant attraction, they must confront the reality of societal expectations imposed by her family. The film stars Pavia Sidhu (“The Flash,” “Vellai Pookal”) and Yugam Sood in his acting feature debut. The film is Singh’s first set in his native India, and was described by Variety‘s reviewer as “a sobering tragedy of young lovers punished for their class difference.”
Popular on Variety
The festival’s other feature film highlights include the stylized violence of “Kill,” written and directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat and produced by Karan Johar and Guneet Monga; the coming-of-age story Sundance prizewinner “Girls Will Be Girls,” written and directed by Shuchi Talati; Christo Tomy’s “Undercurrent,” which explores themes of female solidarity; a tender love story “Ben and Suzanne, A Reunion in 4 Parts,” written and directed by Shaun Seneviratne; and the drama “A House Named Shahana,” by Leesa Gazi and co-written by Aanon Siddiqui.
Directed by Nikhil Nagesh Bhat, “Kill” is a martial arts thriller that premiered at the 2023 Toronto festival and won the festival’s Midnight Madness first runner-up award. It will be released by Lionsgate Films and Roadside Attractions in U.S. theaters on July 4, and in India on July 5.
IFFLA will screen two episodes of the Riz Ahmed-produced documentary series “Defiance: Fighting the Far Right,” which shines a light on the protest movement led by young British Asians in the late 1970s and early 1980s to oppose anti-immigrant rhetoric and assaults. The series is directed by the Primetime Emmy Award-winner Satiyesh Manoharajah.
“The eclectic lineup covering most of the vast and diverse South Asian regions, including the diaspora, is directed by a majority of incredibly talented first-time filmmakers debuting with their works. The lineup organically reveals some of the themes such as solidarity and resilience, tender love, and familial violence, inherent to the South Asian communities around the globe,” said IFFLA’s artistic director Anu Rangachar.
The festival’s inaugural IFFLA Industry Day, is set to be the first-of-its-kind forum for South Asian film and TV executives in the U.S. Elements include spotlights on emerging South Asian voices, educational opportunities and Launch Pad, a pitch competition with a $10,000 development grant available to the winner.
This year’s shorts competition includes a diverse range of female-centric stories, featuring the work of six female directors. Their stories include present diaspora and coming-of-age themes and are told in ten different languages. Among them are the world premieres of “Hema,” directed by Ritvik Dhavale and starring Rajshri Deshpande (“Angry Indian Goddesses,” “Sacred Games”), about an Indian woman’s journey to rediscover her new purpose in life after moving to Los Angeles for her husband’s job; and debut director Shashwat Dwivedi’s comedic tale “Bobby Beauty Parlour,” directed by Shashwat Dwivedi and produced by Anurag Kashyap.
IFFLA is supported by NBCUniversal, Joy of Sharing Foundation, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, and the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs, among other sponsors.
