Zohra Segal Movies
- 2007
A man in the autumn of his years finds love with a woman three decades his junior in this romantic comedy-drama. Buddha Gupta (Amitabh Bachchan) is a man in his mid-Sixties who has devoted his life to running the most celebrated Indian restaurant in London. Buddha puts his professional life before his personal needs, and has only two close companions -- his mother (Zohra Sehgal), who lives with him and still bosses him around, and a young girl (Swini Khara) who is suffering from a terminal illness. One evening at his restaurant, Buddha encounters a customer who has the nerve to send back a dish, saying it isn't spicy enough, and he meets Nina Verma (Tabu), an attractive and self-assured woman in her thirties who refuses to be intimidated by the restaurateur's reputation. While their first meeting is less than cheerful, fate keeps bringing Buddha and Tina together, and in time they realize they've fallen in love and decide to get married. When Tina learns her father Omprakash (Paresh Rawal) is in the hospital after a heart attack, she flies to India with her fiancé in tow; Buddha, who is several years older than Omprakash, tries to break the news of the coming nuptials to him by asking the father for Tina's hand in marriage. Buddha's respect for tradition leads to a difficult situation when Omprakash refuses to give permission for the May-December lovers to wed. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Tabu, (more)
The title of Saawariya carries a double meaning; it refers to both an epithet for the Hindu god Krishna and to a title sought by many Indian lovers, who wish to reach a state of 'Saawariya,' or overpowering consumption by love. Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali's romantic drama Saawariya weaves the tale of the ill-fated romance between two such individuals: artist Raj, who finds the fulfillment of his soul's yearning when he enters one of the most picturesque rural hamlets in India, and his lover, Sakina, a mysterious young woman whom he spots standing on a bridge. Raj tries desperately to win Sakina's love and devotion, but finds it increasingly difficult to accept the truth of her past. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ranbir Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, (more)
Director Paul Mayeda Berges adapts author Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni magic realist tale about an enchanting Indian orphan who has leaned to harness the magical properties of spices. Orphaned by regional strife in her homeland of India, Tilo (Aishwarya Rai) is subsequently kidnapped by a vicious gang of bandits. A daring escape is quick to follow, and soon after washing up on mysterious shores the traumatized girl is sheltered by a benevolent old woman (Zohra Segal) who reveals to her the remarkable powers of common spices. Later, after moving to Oakland, California and opening her own spice shop, Tilo is compelled to follow three strict stipulations is she is to retain her ability to harness these magnificent powers: she must never use the powers for her own gain, she can never venture outside of her store, and she must never make contact with the skin of another person. When a handsome architect (Dylan McDermott) crashes his motorcycle just outside of the shop and the kindly proprietor rushes to his aid, the instant chemistry between the pair soon finds Tilo's resolve put to the ultimate test. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aishwarya Rai, Dylan McDermott, (more)
A star-crossed love affair has political as well as emotional repercussions in this Bollywood romantic drama. Veer Pratap Singh (Shah Rukh Khan) is an officer and pilot in the Indian Air Force who one day meets a beautiful Pakistani heiress, Zaara Hayaat Khan (Preity Zinta), as she travels to a small Indian village to scatter the ashes of one of her family's loyal servants. Veer has family in the village, and while most Indians show no affection for Pakistanis, his aunt and uncle are willing to take Zaara in for the night. It isn't long before Veer finds himself falling for her; however, Veer learns that Zaara is engaged to another man, Raza (Manoj Bajpai), a cruel and humorless Pakistani. A friend of Zaara contacts Veer and tells him that Zaara wants out of her engagement and has strong feelings for him, but when he comes to her rescue, matters take a turn for the worse and Veer winds up in jail. Twenty years later, Veer is still behind bars, and finds that his case is being given a new trial, but while he has a new chance at freedom, he discovers his lawyer will be going up against a state attorney who has never lost a case. Veer-Zaara was one of the first Indian blockbusters to open in India, the United States, and the United Kingdom at the same time. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, (more)
Directed by Metin Huseyin, Anita & Me follows the development of a cross-cultural friendship between 12-year-old Indian immigrant Meena (Chandeep Uppal) and her 14-year-old British neighbor, Anita (Anna Brewster). An aspiring writer, Meena (Uppal) writes down all the challenges of her new life in great detail, from her parents insistence that she focus solely on her studies, to the vast cultural differences between Britain and India. The most notable subject, however, is the comfort she finds from her unlikely friendship with Anita. Anita & Me is based on a novel by Meera Syal, who also penned the screenplay. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kabir Bedi, Max Beesley, (more)
Ismail Merchant, best known as the producing half of the successful Merchant-Ivory team, once again steps behind the camera as director for this story of life among Indian expatriates in the 1950s. Ganesh (Aasif Mandvi) is a young man who was born to a community of Indian exiles living in Trinidad. Always bright, Ganesh hopes to hake a career for himself as a writer, but he lacks the money to pursue writing full-time, and his ideas about education clash with those of his employers after he gets a job as a teacher, leaving him with few prospects. Returning to Trinidad after the death of his father, Ganesh is pressured into marrying a local woman named Leela (Ayesha Dharker), whose father, Ramlogan (Om Puri), is a successful merchant. Ganesh and Leela move to a modest home in the hills, where he begins work on a book, but Leela chafes at the Spartan lifestyle dictated by Ganesh's finances, and for a time leaves their home to stay with her parents. In time, Ganesh completes his first book -- a book for lay people on the Hindu faith -- but sales are sluggish until Ganesh and Leela come up with a plan to boost interest in Ganesh's work. Ganesh is promoted as a "Mystic Masseur" with special powers to heal the infirm; Ganesh's routine quickly makes his work very popular with spiritual seekers, and his book becomes a top-seller. However, Ganesh becomes disillusioned with his newfound fame and power, especially after he attempts to take advantage of his celebrity by entering the political arena. The Mystic Masseur was based on a novel by V.S. Naipaul, who won an Nobel prize in the year of this film's release. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Romantic misunderstandings, unrequited love, and the gap between two very different cultures provide the backdrop for this romantic musical drama from India. Sameer (Salman Khan) is a gifted singer from Europe who has come to New Delhi to study Indian vocal techniques with Pandit Darbar (Vikram Gokhale). Darbar's beautiful daughter Nandini (Aishwarya Rai) makes a strong impression on Sameer, and soon he's head over heels in love. But everyone advises Sameer to stay away from the girl, and Nandini is set up in a marriage with Vanraj (Ajay Devgan), a successful lawyer. But Nandini isn't happy with her new husband, and Vanraj soon finds evidence that his wife has been corresponding with Sameer, who has since returned to Europe. A jealous Vanraj packs his bags and sets out to find the singer, wanting to know the nature of the relationship between him and Nandini. With top "Bollywood" star Salman Khan in the lead, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam was a major box-office success in India, and was enthusiastically received in screenings at the 2000 Vancouver Film Festival and 2000 Seattle Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai, (more)
Mani Rathnam, who has proven with films like Bombay (1995) and Iruvar (1998) that it was possible in India to make quality films that could also be box-office hits, chose the 50th anniversary celebrations of Indian Independence as the backdrop for this film about the clash between love and ideology. Amar Kant Varma is the son of a deceased army officer and he lives with his family in Delhi. As a program executive for All India Radio, he travels all over the country to interview common people to mark the anniversary. On one of these trips, he meets a mysterious girl named Meghna at a train station, but loses sight of her before he can get to know her. He sees her again in another town and reminds her of their meeting. Meghna doesn't seem to recognize him. Although she doesn't really want him, he follows her all the way to Ladakh. After two days together, she leaves him to join a group of insurgents on a mission. Amar is heart-broken and marries a girl of his mother's choice. In the meantime, Meghna is chosen to be the main person on a suicide mission targeting the Republic Day Parade. She finds Amar and their destinies entwine. Director Ratnam uses the two characters as symbols for two distinct parts of India at odds with each other -- the big states on the one hand, and the border areas with minority populations on the other. The latter are angry at the central government for having neglected them, which have resulted in a recession. Dil Se, a good example of the energy and imagination of the "Bollywood" movies (referring to Bombay, the "Hollywood of India") from one of the masters of the genre was screened as part of the International Forum of Young Cinema at the 49th International Berlin Film Festival, 1999. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Manisha Koirala, (more)
- 1994
- R
An assembly of Indian women, both immigrants and their British-born brethren, travel to the English seaside in this comic drama. The plot focuses on a trio of young women caught between tradition and independence: Ginder (Kim Vithana), who risks the uncertainties of social ostracism and single motherhood in order to escape from her abusive husband; Hashida (Sarita Khajuria), who jeopardizes her promising future in medical school when she becomes pregnant by her West Indian boyfriend (Mo Sesay); and Simi (Shaheen Khan), who integrates her feminist politics and her commitment to her culture by heading up the Saheli Asian Women's Group. To provide the women of her community with a chance to get together and enjoy themselves, Simi organizes a ladies-only trip to Blackpool, a seaside resort town that resembles Atlantic City. Along for the ride are boy-crazy teens, conservative matrons, and a garish visitor from Bombay, each of them offering a singular perspective on Asian immigrant culture. Asha (Lalita Ahmed), a middle-aged wife, mother, and newsstand proprietor, spends much of the trip experiencing picturesque visions in which an Indian goddess reprimands her for the missed opportunities in her life. Introspection gets pre-empted, however, when Ginder's husband (Jimmi Harkishin) and his brothers show up looking for a little involuntary family reunion. Bhaji on the Beach screenwriter Meera Syal would go on to pen the award-winning novel (Anita and Me) and work on Goodness Gracious Me, the BBC's Indian/Pakistani sketch comedy show. Fans of Anglo-Asian cinema will recognize actress Souad Faress, who plays the colorful Rekha Tendon, from her role as the haughty Cherry in My Beautiful Laundrette. Akbar Kurtha, who plays one of Ginder's brothers-in-law, would go on to portray the title character in My Son the Fanatic. Writer/director Gurinder Chadha would return with another ensemble feature, What's Cooking?, in 2000. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sarita Khajuria, Amer Chadha-Patel, (more)
A Toronto family of East Indian immigrants seeks to gain a foothold in the Canadian world in this 1992 production. The patriarch (Saeed Jaffrey) is a postal worker struggling to make ends meet, while his nephew (played by writer/director Srinivas Krishna) makes trouble both in the family and on the streets of Toronto. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Saeed Jaffrey, Srinivas Krishna, (more)
- 1988
The inmates of an insane asylum and Indian bureaucrats react to the sweeping political changes of 1947 when over a million people died in the conflict that led to the establishment of Pakistan. Actors often play dual roles as they portray bureaucrats and the hopelessly insane. Little insight of the historical causes for the partition is given in the feature. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roshan Seth, Zohra Segal, (more)
- 1986
- R
Writer/director Derek Jarman injects his patented iconoclasm in this biography of Renaissance artist Michelangelo Merisa da Caravaggio. Nigel Terry plays the title role, whom (according to Jarman) essentially told his own life story in his paintings. Caravaggio travelled among thieves and prostitutes, many of whom were his models. He once killed a man, kept a deaf/mute child as a virtual slave, and squandered every penny he ever made. That we should care anything about so miserable and obscure a personality is a tribute to Jarman's filmmaking savvy--and the number of elements from his own well-publicized life that he injects into the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nigel Terry, Sean Bean, (more)
- 1985
- PG
This surreal British black comedy tells the tale of poor Oliver Shadey, a mechanic who longs to become a woman but lacks the money for the operation. Oliver is a talented lad and has the rare ability to read the minds of people and put their thought on film. He has the best of intentions when he hooks up with greedy Sir Cyril Landau with a way to earn some money and achieve his goal. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Antony Sher, Billie Whitelaw, (more)
- 1985
This film's two well-known stars -- Nastassja Kinski as Diane, a sophisticated trainee on the New York Stock Exchange, and Ben Kingsley as Selim an Arab mogul -- are hard-put to bring life into this beautifully photographed but underscripted romantic drama. Diane is kidnapped and brought to Selim's scenic fortress hideaway in a North African desert. In an interesting role reversal, Diane has no qualms about bedding down an attractive man, but Selim's harem is purely decorative -- he does not share her cavalier view of sexual relationships. The twist is that Selim is not really that bad -- in spite of the fact that he has kidnapped the girl, he actually feels compelled to uphold a time-honored tradition that he doesn't really believe. Selim is an aesthete who wants to embrace the ways of the Western world. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nastassja Kinski, Ben Kingsley, (more)
The Merchant-Ivory team adopts a semi-documentary stance in Courtesans of Bombay. Though several scenes are dramatized, this film is essentially an unadorned look at prostitution in modern India. The film details the impoverished conditions that would prompt otherwise chaste Indian women to seek out employment as "performers"--a euphemism for the World's Oldest Profession, though they do indeed give public dancing and singing performances as a sideline. Indian actress Saeed Jeffrey heads the cast of this Ruth Prawer Jhabvala-scripted "docudrama." Courtesans of Bombay was made for British television, and original telecast in those late hours ostensibly off limits to younger viewers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Saeed Jaffrey, Zohra Segal, (more)
- 1973
- R
Essentially a reworking of their earlier omnibus Asylum, this is another anthology of pulp horror tales from Amicus, this one helmed by the ever-reliable Freddie Francis. It features a quartet of eerie vignettes involving four patients in the care of psychiatrist Dr. Tremayne (Donald Pleasence), who is attempting to justify his strange theories to a colleague (Jack Hawkins, who died shortly after his scenes were filmed) by explaining the horrific events that drove the patients to their current state. The first tale centers on a young boy (Russell Lewis), whose parents' constant squabbling prompts him to conjure an imaginary tiger to devour them. The second involves a Victorian-era bicycle which allows its finder (Peter McEnery) to travel back in time and live as his own ancestor. The goofy third chapter pits a jealous wife (Joan Collins) against a strange rival for her husband's attention: a tree possessed by a human soul. The final segment stars Kim Novak (a last-minute replacement for Rita Hayworth) as a literary agent who must sacrifice her own daughter (Mary Tamm) to appease the restless spirit of her client's mother. Although certainly not the studio's best effort, this is still an amusing diversion, featuring the standard twist ending and a flamboyant approach suggestive of EC horror comics. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide
Killikrates (John Richardson) is the ruler of the city of Kuma, an idyllic civilization seemingly frozen in another time. In a religious ceremony, he waits for his Queen Ayesha (Olinka Berova) to return and be immortalized by a fiery ritual. The High Priest has other ideas and plants a look-alike from provincial France to take her place. The new girl has a boyfriend, a dedicated physician who must rescue his damsel in distress. The doctor battles against the evil machinations of the High Priest to save his true love and help the benevolent ruler keep his crown. Things get out of hand when the fire spreads out of control and Kuma is in danger of being completely engulfed in flames. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Richardson, Olinka Berova, (more)
- 1967
A lawmen who is sworn to bring a rebel to justice finds himself developing a great respect and admiration for his quarry in this period drama. In the 1920s, the British Raj still rule India, and Freddy Young (Trevor Howard) is a English police officer whose duty is to keep order among the native Bhantas. While Young believes in his heart that the people of India should be free to determine their own political destiny, he is forced by his occupation to uphold British law. However, not all the Bhantas willingly follow the commands of the British, and Sultan (Yul Brynner) is an Indian determined to lead his people to freedom from colonial tyranny. Young is instructed to find and capture Sultan, but while his superiors indicate that they would not be upset if Sultan were to meet with an accident, Young is impressed by the courage and intelligence of his adversary, and he is determined to bring him back alive. Young eventually infiltrates Sultan's camp and pleads with the leader to give himself up before more bloodthirsty British forces storm his compound. The Long Duel's supporting cast includes Edward Fox and Charlotte Rampling, in roles that predated their rise to stardom. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Yul Brynner, Trevor Howard, (more)
- 1965
In the second episode of the four-part story "The Crusade," the Doctor (William Hartnell), Ian (William Russell), and Vicki (Maureen O'Brien) are forcibly detained in the camp of King Richard the Lionhearted (Julian Glover). Ian manages to secure Richard's permission to leave so that he can rescue Barbara (Jacqueline Hill), who has been captured by the Saracen followers of Prince Saladin (Bernard Kay). By episode's end, however, Ian has been pressed into service as a marriage broker. Written by David Whitaker, "The Knight of Jaffa" originally aired April 3, 1965. At present, only the soundtrack of this episode is known to survive. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William Hartnell, William Russell, (more)
