First Chicago South Asian Film Festival in October
Chicago, IL: On Wednesday, September 15th, the enthusiastic team organizing the first ever Chicago South Asian Film Festival (CSAFF) Team held a press conference at the Allegro Chicago, 171 West Randolph Street at LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL for members of the media highlighting the much awaited event. Also present at the conference were the delightful local filmmakers Sandeep Sharma of Wild Things and Ann Feldman of Water Pressures.
The CSAFF will showcase 16 diverse independent films during the 3-day gathering in the heart of downtown Chicago from October 1-3. The opening day will be a red carpet affair at the Chicago Cultural Center with Deepti Naval, Manisha Koirala, Rajit Kapoor, Aparna Sen, Ajay Naidu, Ravi Kapoor, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Meera Simhan, Umakanth Thumrugoti, Rajeshwari Sachdev, Baljit Sangra, Bornila Chatterjee, Reena Shah and Sandeep Sharma. The opening night movie is Deepthi Naval’s Two Paise for Sunshine Four Aanas for Rain. After the viewing, there will be a lavish gala giving guests a chance to mingle with other attendees, filmmakers, and the remarkable artists.
Kekti Parikh, CSAFF Executive Director, spoke radiantly of her experiences with South Asian Film festivals across the U.S. in cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Boston. However, it always bothered her that her hometown of Chicago never had these exuberantly entertaining soirees. She decided that to be the one to bring a South Asian Film festival debut in Chicago, but for this to be even remotely possible, she would need the assistance of extraordinary and dedicated individuals. Amit Rana catalyzed the event by bringing Parikh together with the best possible team members, full of passion for cinema and the rich culture of South Asia: Mileen Patel, Parveen Usman, Kaivan Dave, and Suhani Amin. After the individuals met, the CSAFF became inevitable.
When asked what the festival has to offer to Chicagoans, Mileen Patel, CSAFF Programming Director, spoke of the rich story telling of the selected films and the unique ability of cinema to transcend across all of humanity. He proudly proclaimed that the diverse line up offers something for everyone.
The films will be screened at Columbia College Chicago and the Chicago Cultural Center. Movies range from feature films to documentaries and even shorts. There are a handful of premieres in the line up including the World Premieres of Water Pressures and The Professionals.
There are variety of passes and tickets available ranging from the opening night gala to full day access to individual film showings and more. There will also be free screenings for certain films on the Chicago Cultural Center.
For more information on the exciting and monumental event, please visit www.csaff.org.
