Filmwhalla

Bollywood blockbusters leaving you a little drained? All spice and no substance?

The Desi Dish has a solution for you.

From October 3-9, New York will host the 2007 South Asian International Film Festival. Filmmakers desi and non-desi come together to explore various themes from the South Asian diaspora from the comedic to tragic, from Pakistan to France to the U.S.

Opening the festival is the film Loins of Punjab, the story of 5 Indian-Americans and a Jewish Indophile competing in "Desi Idol", starring none other than the legendary Shabana Azmi. Shabana is also being honored at the festival with a lifetime achievement award by SAIFF for her achievements as an actress.



The festival will also showcase over 50 other films and documentaries, including Outsourced, about you guessed it, outsouring, Rivaaz, a film about a family of prostitutes, Dosar, a Bengali film about infidelity, Shame, a documentary about Mukhtaran Maispoke, a brave Pakistani woman who out after being gang raped.

If the films leaving you feeling a little heavy, you can always lighten up with a cocktail at one of the nightly afterparties. In fact ticketholders are granted free permission.

Sounds like a hot ticket.

The South Asian Film Festival, Oct 3-9, New York.
www.saiff.org