‘Araam: breathing space’ features work from Halima Cassell and Zarah Hussain and includes works in progress, as well as existing and newly commissioned work.

For when I caught up with the East Is East and The Guru film star, The Diary was taken on a trip down memory lane as the actor reminisced about his younger years growing up in Manchester and Cheadle Hulme from the age of seven to 16.

Guests at Madame Tussauds will enjoy some of the authentic musical traditions of India, including sitar, flute and tabla players as well as traditional dance performed by accomplished classical musicians.

Human Is Human is written by Manchester University PhD research student Mehrdad Rayani Makhsous, who is also an established Iranian writer, academic, documentary maker and director.

The star of television shows including ‘Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow’, ‘Live at The Apollo’, ‘Mock the Week’ and ‘8 Out of 10 Cats’ will be on stage at the arena on Sunday 24 October for the Manchester Comedy Festival.

Real-life loved up couple and stars of the stars of BAFTA nominated Channel 4’s, The Family, Jeet and Kaki have a romantic treat planned for their fans with their next theatre production; Obviously You Are Pregnant & You look Fat.

Three bands from Rhyddings Business and Enterprise School will open the event, followed by dance acts including RM Fusion and Fearless and rockers Luva Gunk.

The star of television shows including Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow, Live at The Apollo, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross and 8 Out of 10 Cats will be on stage at the arena on Sunday 24 October.

The Mega Mela festival in Platt Fields Park, in Rusholme, is the biggest of its kind in the north west.

The Exodus festival will celebrate the arts and culture of Greater Manchester’s refugee and diverse communities next month.

The crowd will be warmed up by acts includin, ‘Gorilla Chilla, Billy Blitz, Illmatik, young twist and Rishi Rich Products latest protégé and heartthrob Abbas Hasan.

This, however, is a Bollywood-style musical we’re talking about here, so get dried out man, face the music and dance, dance, dance to the rabble-rousing finale.

Combining history with art, it follows the legendary story of seven horsemen travellers on a remarkable journey. They will search for the one who will leave his mark on the Arabian Desert and carve his name as a humanitarian and hero of civilisation.

Inspired by a desire to preserve a sacred tradition and introduce it to contemporary society, renown calligrapher, Sabah Arbilli commissioned by Creative Colours put quill to parchment, and wrote the first page of the Quran amongst a audience of 300 people.

The nasheed artist will be joined by Idris Phillips, Khaleel Muhammed, Ahmed Bostan and Hamza Robertson.

He was a true chronicler of the town’s working class, our heartache and our humour.

]]> http://menmedia.co.uk/asiannews/entertainment/arts/s/1240190_a_timeless_tale_of_family_values?rss=yes Mon, 17 May 2010 11:05:04 -0000 http://menmedia.co.uk/asiannews/entertainment/arts/s/1240174_salaam_bombay_gets_asian_arthouse_showing?rss=yes Director of Monsoon Wedding, Mira Nair directs this wrenching drama of an 11-year-old boy (real-life street child Shafiq Syed) who heads to the big city and joins a sea of homeless children and down-and-out adults scrambling to survive the pitiless streets.

The fantasy of Bollywood dreams hangs just out of reach in posters, movies, and radio tunes, momentary respites from the hard reality of a world ruled by brutal pimps and drug dealers.

The comedy set in Bolton’s close-knit Asian community, it is also based on a classic, All In Good Time, by arguably the town’s greatest writer Bill Naughton, in his centenary year.

As the face and co-writer of the BBC2 comedy The Day Today, he mercilessly lampooned the sensationalist British news media, before taking his coruscating brand of satire to new heights on Channel 4 with Brass Eye.

Rifco Arts and Theatre Royal Stratford East in association with Warwick Arts Centre are bringing to the stage, Britain's got Bhangra.

Saris and the City is a contemporary story of a modern day professional woman who jet sets between London, Mumbai and Dubai living life to the fullest.

It might have taken the best part of 30 years to realise, but the pact they made as two little boys in the early 1980s will finally come to fruition this summer when Hardeep and Sanjay get together to launch the food-centred celebrity entertainment events.

The award-winning festival, which is supported by Film London and Arts Council of England, is is the capital's premier celebration of film, arts and music, dedicated to creating awareness of well-being and mental health in the Black, Asian and other minority ethnic communities where these issues are often stigmatised.

On its original release in 2004, the film became the first movie entirely shot on a camcorder with a budget of less than £1000 to get a UK cinema release.

Although the production was first performed in London, Rafta, Rafta’s arrival in Bolton is something of a homecoming.

Organisers are in discussion with over forty authors and artists so far, with many already confirmed for the festival’s debut year.

Believe it or not, it’s Coronation Street’s Shobna Gulati, pictured, adopting a Poker Face for our pictures.

When things get nasty, only the bravest remain to ensure brutal acts of aggression are recorded. German photojournalist Christoph Bangert is one such person.

Called 'Embracing Spirit,' this is the first time Shahida is exhibiting a collection of paintings with no ceramics.

The Big Pitch, dubbed 'the X-Factor of film' is an innovative Skillset supported training programme that attracted over 200 applications from the UK’s most exciting up-and-coming filmmakers when it was launched as part of Northern Lights Film Festival 2007.

The Burma Play is a story told with flair, biting humour, virtuoso performances and original live music.

London's tourist hotspot Trafalgar Square was transformed as thousands of people marked the festival of light.

Developed from a collaborative partnership between Patel and Singh, Sine Language examines how cultural dialogue can emerge from the complex rhythms of drumming, physical movement and the environmental noise of a gallery space.

Photographer Dinu Li visited a number of phone booth shops – whose discount calls abroad make them popular with immigrants – to document the people who use them.

The event was extremely timely given that the new UK India co-production treaty has just come into force and Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire which was shot in India with a largely Indian crew will close the BFI London Film Festival next week.

The exclusive 2 for 1 production incorporates beautiful scenes from the Award winning Bollywood film Veer Zaara starring Shahrukh Khan within the moving theatrical production.

DON'T miss this a rare chance to see Bharatanatyam presented in a completely new way with Sampradaya Dance Creations.

This 'unique' company, featuring leading Canadian dancer Lata Pada will feature two completely different themes - Vivarta and Howzzat!

The production will be an original, dynamic hip hop production fusing dance, live music, digital arts and spoken word and will take place at Zion Arts Centre from 4- 6 December at 7.30pm.

The Beauty of Abstraction features eleven large-scale paintings where Hussain has experimented with both an increased size in her work and the use of bolder, more contemporary colours.

Dr. Rajinder Dudrah from The University of Manchester will be providing an insight in the world of Bollywood films for beginners.

The two UK directors will be sponsored to participate in the Tribeca All Access programme which will run from 20-25 April 2009 at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.

Hip hop, gospel and R ‘n’ B will be seamlessly interwoven into the production alongside jazz, street and break dance.

And now Revolver Entertainment (distributors of Kidulthood) has teamed up with the social networking site Bebo and the National Basketball Association (NBA) in a unique initiative to search for talented individuals who not only can act but also bust some moves on the dance floor and master a ball on the basketball court.

Launching today, Mills & Boon Passions is the first of its kind short story writing contest for aspiring authors across India.

The exhibition at The Noble Sage Art Gallery, will comprise of more than thirty-five works by six up and coming artists from Kerala in South India: Upendranath T.R., S. Ravi Shankar, Murali Nagapuzha, Manoj Vyloor, Pradeep Puthoor and A.S. Sajith.

SHADES, by Alia Bano, explores tolerance within London’s Muslim community and in modern Britain more generally.

We all ask ourselves, "Will I ever find The One?", "What’s the secret to happiness?’’ "Is the grass really greener on the other side?" It used to be so simple.

Artists currently living in India and Pakistan will make their international debut at the venue in Through Other Eyes: Contemporary Art from South Asia at The Herbert in Jordan Well in the city centre from January 23 to April 19.

It will feature 40 stills from famous Bollywood movies through the decades along with descriptions of the stars pictured and the story behind the film.

This is the first show of its kind on Indian television where real people tackle personal disputes and see them resolved live before viewers, complete with high drama and emotions.

The tour is a combination of drama, dance and music mixed with colourful costume and traditional chutti make up.

Syed Noor from the Pakistan-based Paragon Entertainment Group plans to shoot parts of his next film in the town.

As part of the Tongues on Fire 12th Asian Film Festival, the director is attending a range of functions across London, including a BAFTA interview, a director’s workshop at the University of Westminster, and a talk on women in films at the Nehru Centre.

Based on interviews with dozens of women from across the country and around the Sheffield, Stephanie Street’s new play lifts the veil on a world of custom and tradition.

Children in certain Muslim homes are increasingly discouraged from participating in drama, art and music and the conference organised by British Muslims for Secular Democracy (bmsd) and supported by the British Council will address this problem and the consequences.

Born into a poor family, Surya grows up with few luxuries. Poor health keeps him away him away from school and that is when his elder brother introduces him to carrom. 

The film will be an epic tracing the historical account of the Taj Mahal.

Billed as an authentic introduction to the vibrancy of the all-singing, all-dancing Bollywood films, the production charts the history of the world’s largest and most prolific film industry, and the succession of stars that have lit its way over generations.

The new film, West is West, reunites many of the original cast and is again written by Salford-raised playwright Ayub Khan-Din based on his own experiences.

]]> http://menmedia.co.uk/asiannews/entertainment/arts/s/1189791_now_east_meets_west?rss=yes Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:02:51 -0000 http://menmedia.co.uk/asiannews/entertainment/arts/s/1189549_handful_of_henna_preview?rss=yes The stories of Muslim mothers and daughters are brought to the stage in a brand new play - Handful of Henna.

For the first time since she was a girl, Saheeda is returning to her family village for a wedding.

It will be officially screened during the festival's opening night of Generation 14plus competitive programme.

The British flick dubbed 'a supernatural escapade' is set in West London and revolves around a Punjabi mother obsessively seeking a husband for her rapidly ageing daughter and includes murders, ghosts, and detectives.

The From Blighty with Love season will showcase recent independent UK films in cinemas across three southern Indian cities from 26 February to 11 March 2010.

The biopic has been backed by Qatar-based media entertainment company, Alnoor Holdings who will have prominent Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi to oversee all aspects of the shoot.

Writers from the ages of eight through to 16 can now enter and winners for both best short story and best poetry categories will be announced at the awards ceremony scheduled for April 2010.

Cash and Curry, which won the coveted Best Audience Award at last years London Portobello Film Festival, is being lined up as a special treat for the people of Mumbai.

Their films have always been a wake up call to film students and lovers of cinema. Mixing compassion and simplicity, they won the hearts of film audience transcontinental.

Deen Tight takes the viewer on a controversial and emotional journey through the lives of several American and UK based Muslim hip-hop artists as they search deep within their hearts to find a balance between their faith, culture and identity as Muslims in the West.

This year's films, which explore the passion of faith in modern society, have been received from all over the world, and a panel of professional film makers will be deciding which will win the Premier Award of £1,000, with a further award to be made by Signis, the Catholic International Film Organisation.

Lying on it is a motionless man, paralysed by war injuries and fed intravenously through a tube.

The interactive event brought to life the station's most popular channels as fans seized the opportunity to meet stars including Sara Khan and Parul Chauhan, the lead actresses of Bidaai, India’s number one drama series on STAR Plus.

The Indian Film Company announced the news that following a deal with international sales agent Fortissimo Films to sell the film outside of India. The deal marks Fortissimo’s first venture in Hindi cinema.

The softly spoken director has had much praise for his first Malayalam feature film Orkkuka Vallappozhum - Remember Once a While.

The movie is to be directed by Deepa Mehta whose productions Fire, which also starred Azmi and Das as a lesbian couple caused quite a stir.

Entries for the Insight Festival must reach the official address - Insight Film Festival, Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL - by noon on 14 September 2009

The 25-minute stylish black and white comedy with English subtitles is a fresh and original idea from Nottingham based writer Sarmad Masud, whose script was chosen as part of C4’s new drama talent strand Coming Up.

Initially inspired by the neo-realist tradition, Ray's cinema has influenced both Scorsese and Kurosawa and displays a rare blend of intellect and emotion.

The band will be performing at clubs, festivals, yoga retreats, castles and conducting workshops for local musicians between August 17-September 27.

Written from the heart and from personal experience, Nadeem Akbar’s striking novel, The Afghans, reveals the truth behind our media generated image of life in Afghanistan.

A third-generation Anglo-Indian, Mayin leads a life living the dreams and desires of everybody around her, without ever fulfilling her own.

Star TV is giving viewers a chance to experience behind the scenes in a new event - 'Simply STAR’.

An Ode To My Sisters is the first production by South East based Images Of Elsewhere that will tour London, the South East and Birmingham this autumn.

Brit Asia Super Star is the first ever British Asian singing contest that will aim to uncover and nurture fresh talent.

Adapted from an internationally acclaimed show called Moment of Truth, the Hindi version will be hard hitting as contestants boldly share their bitter truths.

The pair, Suleman Mirza and Madhu Singh, will be headlining at Slumdog Meets Space Bar, a charity event raising money for Christies.

On Sunday, there is the highly intricate and very beautiful Bharatanatyam, which hails from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu and is perhaps the most popular of all classical dances.

Last year's mela attracted 55,000 visitors, and organisers expect this year's event to be even bigger.

Kala Phool presents Mother India 21st Century Remix (MI21), a 45-minute live soundtrack performance piece that transforms one of India’s most powerful and iconic films into a must-see experience this summer.

Taking place at Longsight Market in South Manchester between 1pm-8pm on 16 August, the free family fun day will bring together Longsight‘s vibrant community to have fun and celebrate its diversity.

He says he was five when he watched on an old black and white television.

Deepak, who played the BBC One's soap's market trader Sanjay Kapoor in the 1990s, said the current Masood family was unrealistic.

The family-friendly event kicked off a month of activities that will form the Festival of Diversity.

Now in its eighth year, the one day extravaganza taking place on 2 August celebrates Greater Manchester’s diverse refugee communities and promises to be a cultural feast with live music, dance performances, workshops, craft activities and international food stalls from across the globe.

The production, which is directed by Jatinder Verma, tells the story of an Asian kid from Kent who goes to college in London and teams up with a sympathetic group of anti-racists.

Called Double Take, the book is set in Goa and has an intriguing storyline. Author and former Bollywood journalist, Puneet Bhandal, said: "Double Take will give readers a glimpse of life behind the scenes in Bollywood and it will also keep them guessing... it's high on suspense and glamour."

Art director Muhammad Atif was working to promote his debut film project, a romantic comedy called My Big Fat Love Story, at Bradford International Film Festival, when he met Slumdog Millionaire writer Simon Beaufoy, who had his award handy.

Bhavit Mehta, founder of the newly formed Children's publisher Saadhak Books, hopes his first book, Laghu the Clever Crow, reaches into a market few UK publishers he says have rarely ventured.

With some of the biggest stars of Indian music today, Indian Voices day is packed full of concerts and events devoted to India’s vibrant vocal music and dance.

The Kuwaiti series of ‘The 99’, created by Teshkeel Comics, will feature with their DC counterparts in the unprecedented cross-cultural project.

The new film, West is West is written by award-winning playwright Ayub Khan-Din and is set in 1970s Salford. It follows Sajid’s trials and tribulations as the youngest child of a mixed race (Pakistani/white) couple.

This new film, gives audiences an insider’s view of a little-known cultural fusion between Muslims and street beats that has been developing since the very beginnings of hip-hop culture.

Promising to be this summer's 'Bollywood' read the novel isn't your average 'who dunnit' suspense novel but one that takes you into the lives of four glamorous but very different Indian women with a dangerous secret in common.

Moazzam will join the group on Monday 6 July at 6.30pm.

It will be screening Shatranj Ke Khilari (The Chess Players), a film by Satyajit Ray on Thursday 2 July  2009 at 8pm.

Sony Entertainment Television Asia, one of India's leading channels acquired the India rights for ITV's superhit show which is set to launch next month.

The actress who currently heads the Censor Board of India and began her career as an actress in the 1959 Satyajit Ray film Apur Sansar will be at the Nehru Centre in London on 26  talking to film historian/academic Anwesha Arya about her work.

He first came face to face with his likeness in April in Mumbai when for the first time in over 200 years Madame Tussauds took a figure overseas to launch. 

Easy to find and travel to by public transport, the newly refurbished basement bar will play host to London's only retro Bollywood, Funk and disco club night.

Headlining will be Shazia Mirza, an award-winning British Asian stand up comedian from Birmingham who could have married a rich man and lived in a mansion on The Bishops Avenue, with servants, bidets, and horses.

Blockbuster hit Om Shanti Om will be the first Bollywood movie to be screened on Sunday 12 July from 7pm at Eureka! The National Children’s Museum.

This colourful ferry ride along the Mersey led by elders of the Arab community features music and dance and heralds an exciting weekend of exhibitions, performances and activities celebrating Arab culture.

They are a rare act, being one of the few Muslim female outfits around and are unafraid to express themselves through the art of rhyme, covering personal, social, uplifting and beautiful themes.

Film director Mahesh, who played gangster Javed Khan in the multi-Oscar winning movie, came to the Northern town this week to scout locations for his next blockbuster.

Whether it is wedding planning, providing inspiration, information and entertainment, celebrities and reality TV or credit crunching tips, Wedding TV Asia, set to launch on 1 July, will be at the forefront of the Indian wedding market.

Aptly titiled West Is West, the follow-up to the Bafta-winning film will feature much of the same cast, with Om Puri and Linda Bassett returning to play George and Ella Khan and Jimi Mistry returning to play their son Tariq.

Already much hyped on the international film circuit, Teen Patti will be introduced by Serendipity Films to this year’s gathering of the key players from the global film industry, cineastes and media alike.

Nina, who plays Zainab Masood in the BBC One soap, won 'Best Comedy Performance' and 'Best On-screen Partnership' with fellow actor Nitin Ganatra who plays Masood.

Aaqil Ahmed is currently commissioning editor for religion and multicultural at Channel 4. Recent programmes he has commissioned include Christianity: A History, The Qur'an and the BAFTA-winning Saving Africa's Witch Children.

Fans of Khan will be thrilled to know that he will take to centre stage in one of his most emotive solos to date, to an extraordinary composition by the renowned composer and music producer, Nitin Sawhney.

Writer turned director Sooni Taraporevala’s English feature won the audience award for best feature at the recently concluded Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA). The film was screened at the Arclight Theatre on Sunset Boulevard where it found an overwhelming response.

The world famous visitor attraction took the figure to India for a face to face meeting with the real "master blaster" last week and has now taken centre stage in the interactive sports zone on the legendary cricketer’s 36th birthday.

The award-winning annual festival, which is supported by Film London and the Arts Council of England, is London’s premier celebration of film, arts and music, dedicated to creating awareness of well-being and mental health in Black and minority ethnic (BME) groups. The focus this year is on the Asian, Korean and African Caribbean, communities.

From 18 April to 24 April 2009, over 50 Indian writers representing 15 major Indian languages will participate in 40 literary events in London and several other UK destinations.

Shahida Ahmed and Sabah Arbilli are both highly acclaimed internationally and nationally in their specialised skills in traditional arts.

The new wax figure of the cricketer was flown over 7,000 kms to Mumbai for a 'meeting' with the real life legend.

The contest will be held on 29 August 2009 at the prestigious International Convention Centre (ICC) and promises to be a very high profile event with many A-list artists and VIP's attending.

The show from Indian entertainment channel, STAR PLUS, is a very relatable story of a woman who marries a complete stranger and falls in love.

Bringing the epic to life on the small screen, viewers will be able to witness true love unfold in this mythical tale.

The comedy about an Indian mother who takes her obsession with marriage into frighteningly funny territory started filming in London on 28 March and will be prepared for an early 2010 release.

A co-production by the Coliseum and London-based British-Asian theatre company Tamasha, the radical adaptation - by Deepak Verma, aka EastEnders’ Sanjay – swaps the bleak Yorkshire moors for the deserts of north west India and adds a typically lyrical Bollywood soundtrack. 

A stage production by acclaimed writer Deepak Verma – who played Sanjay in EastEnders – will retell the story of twisted fate and lust, but this time set in Rajasthan rather than Yorkshire.

She will play the character of Amira Shah, a beautiful and exceptionally spoilt girlfriend of Syed Masood.

Sponsored by Virgin Media, V promises a bill of must see acts with some of the biggest and best names in music today.

The supernatural comedy about an Indian mother who takes her obsession with marriage into frighteningly funny territory will start filming in London on 28 March.

Tendulkar follows in the famous footsteps of Bollywood giants Amitabh Bachan, Aishwarya Rai, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan and will join other cricket legends Brain Lara and Shane Warne to become the very first Indian sports personality to be portrayed.