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.

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

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. 

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

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.

]]> arts http://www.theasiannews.co.uk/entertainment/arts/s/1189791_now_east_meets_west?rss=yes#comments 2010-01-21T09:02:51 http://www.theasiannews.co.uk/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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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’.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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."

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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. 

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.

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

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.

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.

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 film industry phenomenon of ‘action stills’ – dramatic large-scale publicity photos which are recreated on hand-painted billboards – will be showcased in an acclaimed exhibition at Contact.

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.

Boyle, 52, has been nominated for best director, alongside fellow Briton Stephen Daldry (The Reader).

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

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

On Monday it was the biggest winner at the Golden Globes taking four trophies.

Danny, whose previous films include Shallow Grave and the influential Trainspotting, won Best Director for his movie about how a poor Indian teenager becomes a contestant on the Hindi version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.