It was 1999, the movie “Sixth Sense” was packing theaters and M. Night Shyamalan looked like a genius, a directing prodigy destined to win more Oscars than Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson combined. He was soon dubbed “The Next Spielberg” and every moviegoer learned to pronounce his name — or at least gave it a game try: “M. Night Shy May Lawn.”

A movie trailer trumpeting his name — “FROM THE MIND OF M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN” — would keep you from running to the bathroom during a Monday Night Football timeout, never mind that you’d just downed five Budweisers. You’d sit there and try to imagine what suspense and intrigue the mastermind had conjured this time — and how soon Spielberg would make his concession speech.

Shyamalan was the biggest South Asian name in America, with apologies to Deepak Chopra and Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. Malayalis were quick to pronounce him a fellow Malayali. Tamils were quick to say, “No, he’s a Tamil.” And Philly Grrl was quick to say, “No, he’s a Philly Gy.”

Then came a string of movies that caused critics to groan and audiences to moan. His last offering, “The Last Airbender,” was the last straw for many fans. It virtually swept the Golden Raspberry Awards, winning five Razzies, including “Worst Director” and “Worst Picture.” Roger Ebert gave the movie half a star and called it “an agonizing experience in every category I can think of and others still waiting to be invented.” Malayalis conceded that he’s a Tamil. Tamils insisted that he’s a Malayali. And Philly Grrl said, “You’re both right.”

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I can’t tell you just how excited I am. After being away from LA for the past three Aprils I am now back to enjoy this year’s film festival which, as always, will be at the Arclight. In the past I would have done a detailed breakdown of the films and then maybe recommended some to you based on my LA street sources. Nah. Times have changed and I have been out of that kind of hard slog blogging for much too long. I am going to crowdsource this. Here is the program complete with trailers to most of the films. Tell me what you think I should go see either because the trailer “speaks” to you or because you know that one of these films has serious buzz or you’ve seen it. Better yet, if you made one of these films then leave a comment. The artist is the best advocate. Filmmaker Geeta Malik sent me the trailer to her film which will be playing at the festival so I will feature it:

Also, do any of you plan to go to some of these films? Please let other like-minded readers know in the comments below and maybe we will see each other there.

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This weekend in the Bay Area is the 29th Annual San Francisco Asian American Film Festival hosted by the Center for Asian American Media I was debating going but thought to myself, “Nah…they’re probably only going to have East Asian American films featured and will completely ignore the South Asian American films…so why bother.” Then, I found this video on YouTube.

Well. I’ve been convinced. Now I have to go. A parody of the King’s Speech, the above clip features friends Pia Shah, Sunil Malhotra, and my buddy Rasika Mathur. And of course I’ll be at the film festival – The Taqwacores Motion Picture is screening, finally, in the Bay Area.

I was curious. What are these films on the list that called for Pia, Rasika and Sunil to create the above video? These are the South Asian-ish featured filums at this year’s festiwal:

From the Gala Presentations we have Upaj and the sequel to East is East, the new movie out of the UK West is West.

Under Special Presentations we have the classic Bend It Like Beckham and the abysmal It’s a Wonderful Afterlife. Continue reading →

Even though we may recognize Ajay Naidu for his comedic talent, particularly in his breakthrough cult classic Office Space, his latest film Ashes takes us on a more serious journey. For this indie-flick in which Ajay writes, directs and stars in, the film deals with heavy topics such as mental health issues, growing up in a hyphenated culture, and survival. The film premiered in New York City last month and will be making the indie-film circuit this upcoming year.

I haven’t seen the film yet, but would be interested to hear what people thought who were able to make the premiere for the film. Here’s what Abdullah at MTV Desi had to say:

[Ajay] is Ashes (short for Ashish), an Indian New Yorker charged with caring for his mentally ill older brother Kartik (Faran Tahir) who is fresh out of a care facility. We follow Ashes as he rejects the conventional path of working at an Indian restaurant and instead pursues his chosen hustle, the weed game….Though his drug dealing career is boosting his income, with money comes trouble, and soon Ashes is embroiled in a chess game between high-powered drug dealers. Ashes, who vows only to deal with marijuana and no harder substance, finds himself an accessory to the heroin trafficking. As the stakes rise, so does the number of people involved, complicating the story.

While Ashes and Kartik’s relationship tugs at the heartstrings, the drug game described in Ashes at times becomes cumbersome under the weight of its characters…Moreover, it becomes hard to believe that the business of moving high grade marijuana in New York is under the control of armed South Asian gangsters. [mtvdesi]

To abate my curiosity, I asked Ajay Naidu himself some questions about his making this film, what it means to be a South Asian actor this day and age and creative process. Check out my interview with the poignant Ajay Naidu below.

Taz: You are one of the most recognizable South Asian actors in the US, notable for picking roles where you are hilarious. Most people recognize you as Samir from Office Space though I personally adored your role on American Chai. This film, Ashes, is on the more serious side covering a grittier life story. Do you think the shift from comedy to serious was particularly sudden? How do you think the film will be accepted by your fans who are used to seeing you in comedic roles?

Ajay: It’s a strange thing to think of being called strictly a “comedic” actor. That’s a brand that other people put on actors. I grew up acting in the classical theater playing all kinds of roles not strictly related to funny or humorous subjects. It’s not a “shift” – it is a logical progression for a normal actor to take on roles that challenges them. Actually, the only other time I was noticed for a serious actor, I was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for my role in Suburbia. That was a very, very serious role.

T:You not only co-wrote this film, but you also directed and star in it as well. What is the story about and why did you feel it was an important story to tell?

A: This story is about a small time drug dealer who takes care of his mentally ill older brother. I felt it was important to tell this story because I lost my sister to manic depressive schizoid disorder. I wanted to share that story with others who have suffered through similar losses and to discuss the subject through a modality wherein I could be as honest as possible about it. Film is that mode. Continue reading →