Deepa Mehta is a Canadian based Indian Filmmaker whose film “Water” became eligible for a Best Foreign Film Oscar nomination through a recent Academy ruling that a country may now nominate a film that is not in it’s native language excluding predominantly English spoken films. Ironically, this was not the only twist of fate that narrowly allowed Deepa to share her tale of the repression endured by Varanasi Hindu Widows in the late 1930’s.
According to Hindu Law when a married man dies, a part of his wife dies as well. The widow is offered three options; die beside her husband on the day of his burial, marry his younger brother or carry out the rest of her life in an Ashram in penitence and shunned from the rest of society. “Water” follows the lives of four widows including that of an eight year old little girl.
“Water” is the third part of Mehta’s film trilogy. The first of the series to be released was “Fire” based on the principles of sexuality, secondly “Earth” covers the politics of nationalism and “Water” envelops the principles of religion. Filming began in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, however protestors burned the movie set and threatened Deepa Mehta’s life because they felt she was portraying a distorted view of Hindu Culture. The production was abandoned and filming had to be resumed several years later in Sri Lanka.
Despite these hardships, the film has received numerous accolades; three Genie awards including Best Picture, Best Director from the Vancouver Film Critics Circle, the Freedom of Expression Award from the US Board of Review and most recently, the Canadian Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Film. "It's been very fulfilling to have that kind of recognition and it's important for people who are marginalized in the world," she said in an interview with CBC Arts Online.
A long overdue celebration will begin on Sunday, February 25, at 4pm guests will start filing into Spark Woodfire Grill on Pico Boulevard for a cocktail hour before sitting down for the show. This is not the first Academy Awards event at this location. Last year South Africa’s Best Foreign Film winner “Tsotsi” hosted their Oscar gala at Spark Woodfire Grill. The show will be visible on several screens throughout the three levels of the restaurant. Full dinner will be served along with some traditional Indian Samosas and desserts. The event is closed and for invited guests only.
According to Hindu Law when a married man dies, a part of his wife dies as well. The widow is offered three options; die beside her husband on the day of his burial, marry his younger brother or carry out the rest of her life in an Ashram in penitence and shunned from the rest of society. “Water” follows the lives of four widows including that of an eight year old little girl.
“Water” is the third part of Mehta’s film trilogy. The first of the series to be released was “Fire” based on the principles of sexuality, secondly “Earth” covers the politics of nationalism and “Water” envelops the principles of religion. Filming began in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, however protestors burned the movie set and threatened Deepa Mehta’s life because they felt she was portraying a distorted view of Hindu Culture. The production was abandoned and filming had to be resumed several years later in Sri Lanka.
Despite these hardships, the film has received numerous accolades; three Genie awards including Best Picture, Best Director from the Vancouver Film Critics Circle, the Freedom of Expression Award from the US Board of Review and most recently, the Canadian Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Film. "It's been very fulfilling to have that kind of recognition and it's important for people who are marginalized in the world," she said in an interview with CBC Arts Online.
A long overdue celebration will begin on Sunday, February 25, at 4pm guests will start filing into Spark Woodfire Grill on Pico Boulevard for a cocktail hour before sitting down for the show. This is not the first Academy Awards event at this location. Last year South Africa’s Best Foreign Film winner “Tsotsi” hosted their Oscar gala at Spark Woodfire Grill. The show will be visible on several screens throughout the three levels of the restaurant. Full dinner will be served along with some traditional Indian Samosas and desserts. The event is closed and for invited guests only.
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