Bandit Queen 1994  N/R, 119 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Shekhar Kapur
Cast: Seema Biswas, Nirmal Pandey, Manjoj Bajpai, Rajesh Vivek, Raghuvir Yadav, Govind Namdeo
Based on a true story, the plot revolves around Phoolan Devi (Seema Biswas) who suffered because of her second-class standing as a young woman in India. As a result, she became a rebel and, subsequently, a heroine to other women until her arrest in 1983.
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Earth 1998 N/R, 104 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Deepa Mehta
Cast: Aamir Khan, Nandita Das, Rahul Khanna, Maia Sethna, Kitu Gidwani, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Raghuvir Yadav, Eric Peterson, Gulshan Grover, Babby Singh, Kabir Chowdhury, Arif Zakaria, Lauren Walker, Cinia Jain, Navtej Singh Johar
Set in India during the divisive days of 1947's religious battle between India's Hindus and Pakistan's Muslims, the view of humanity at war is seen through the eyes of a crippled eight-year-old girl, Lenny (Maia Sethna). This story will increase your understanding of history and, perhaps, make you question man's inhumanity to man in the name of religion.
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Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India 2001  N/R, 225 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Ashutosh Gowariker
Cast: Aamir Khan, Gracy Singh, Rachel Shelley, Paul Blackthorne, Suhasini Mulay, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Raghuvir Yadav, Rajendra Gupta, Rajesh Vivek, Shri Vallabh Vyas
Drought and famine have been rough on the people in 19th-century rural India. The lagaan (land tax) imposed by the oppressive British will further devastate the people, so a delegation is sent to ask for relief from the tax. The derisive British will do so under one condition: win a cricket match. This will be tough, since the sport is foreign to the native people, but the challenge is accepted despite the fact that the tax will be tripled if the British win. A fun film with good Indian music and it received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign-Language film.
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Salaam Bombay! 1988 N/R, 113 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Mira Nair
Cast: Shafiq Syed, Sarfuddin Qureshi, Raju Barnad, Raghuvir Yadav, Anita Kanwar, Nana Patekar, Hansa Vithal, Mohanraj Babu, Chanda Sharma, Chandrashekhar Naidu, Amrit Patel, Murari Sharma, Ram Moorti, Irshad Hashmi, Anjaan
This is Mira Nair's first feature film, and actual street children of Bombay were used in its telling. The film was shot entirely on location and tells the story of life on the streets. Homeless 10-year-old Krishna (Shafiq Syed), after being kicked out of his family, joins a circus. Now, abandoned by the circus, Krishna arrives in Bombay where he delivers tea, hoping to earn enough money to return home and convince his mother to accept him. Krishna is befriended by drug dealer Chillum (Raghuvir Yadav) and becomes involved in the world of prostitution, thieves, and other homeless children as his dreams of returning home dwindle. It is a powerful, if often sad, masterpiece. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Film.
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Water 2005  PG-13, 114 min.
Genre: Foreign / Drama
Director: Deepa Mehta
Cast: Sarala, Lisa Ray, John Abraham, Seema Biswas, Manorama, Raghuvir Yadav, Vidula Javalgekar, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Waheeda Rehman, Vinay Pathak, Rishma Malik
This final installment of Deepa Mehta's trilogy follows "Fire" and "Earth." The subject is the forced exile under Hindu law of widows who must serve penitence for their husband's sins. Set in 1938, the story revolves around the trials, tribulations, and eventual rise from victimization of Chuyla (Sarala) who, as an eight-year-old widow, is separated from her family and is sent to live in an ashram (women's home) following the death of her husband. An Oscar nomination was received for Best Foreign Film. 1 User Review
| User Review |
| | exceptional film | mini 01/31/2007 | | |
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| 1. Bandit Queen (1994)
2. Earth (1998)
3. Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001)
4. Salaam Bombay! (1988)
5. Water (2005)
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