3rd i

Levity and Artivism with Fawzia Mirza
2020-10-23 19:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Online, CA, United States
3rd i will showcase comic genius Fawzia Mirza, whose work adeptly uses humor to undo divisive stereotypes and defuse challenging conversations. A queer Pakistani-American actress, director and creator, she is an alumna of the Festival stage, previously screening shorts and also appearing in a live performance in 2015. In this year’s program, we highlight a range of her shorts, from the Bollywood-inspired Queen of My Dreams (2012) and the therapy-couch comedy The First Session (2015), to her documentary work around Pakistan, The Streets Are Ours (2016). We end with her most recent work Saya (co-directed with Anam Abbas, 2018-19) — an ode to Karachi — and I Know Her (2019), a reflection on intimate relationships, which recently made the rounds of the Cannes Film Festival. Fawzia has been hailed a White House “Champion of Change” in Asian American Art & Storytelling, a “Top 10 Creative” (Indiewire), and “10 Filmmakers to Watch” (Independent Magazine).
In the post-screening Q&A, Mirza will discuss her work across theater, TV, and film, and her thoughts on feminist and queer politics in South Asia, specifically Pakistan.

Lucky
2020-10-24 16:00
Delicately crafted, both in story and visual style, this beautiful, emotional tale explores the unusual alliance between an elderly Indian woman (with an irrational fear of Africans) and a South African orphan in post-Apartheid South Africa. Using a muted color palette to reflect themes of nostalgia and family connection, Luthra unravels a complicated story featuring amazing performances from the two main actors. Filmed in Zulu, Hindi, and English, the film is a true international production.
A critical and audience favorite, Lucky is based on Luthra’s earlier short of the same name, which won over 40 international awards including an Oscar nomination. The feature has won Best Actress Abu Dhabi Film Festival, Best Film Bengaluru International Film Festival, and was the official selection of the Toronto International Film Festival, Seattle International Film Festival, and Toronto Black Film Festival.
Luthra’s film will be followed by a discussion with the filmmaker about the South Asian community and its relationship to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Road to Ladakh
2020-10-24 20:30
As an homage to Irrfan Khan, 3rd i is bringing back Road to Ladakh, which premiered at its first film festival in 2003.
Road to Ladakh is a sensual, suspenseful love story revolving around an encounter between two strangers (Irrfan Khan and Koel Purie) thrown together by chance into the magnificent wilderness of Ladakh, near the borders of India and Pakistan. Both are outsiders in this mountainous resort in India, both are lonely, both crave the human contact that their roles in society deny them. A film exquisitely poised on a knife’s-edge between elusiveness and engagement, suspicion and tenderness.
Recently passed in April 2020, Irrfan was possibly the most respected Indian actor of his generation, with memorable turns in The Lunchbox, The Namesake, Slumdog Millionaire, The Amazing Spider-Man, Life of Pi, The Warrior, Paan Singh Tomar and Maqbool. Irrfan has won the Screen Actors Guild Award, National Film Award for Best Actor and one of India’s highest civilian honors, the Padma Shri.
Post-screening discussion with Oscar-nominated director Ashvin Kumar.

Knock, Knock, Knock
2020-10-25 16:00
BAY AREA PREMIERE
This award-winning film, shot in the mountains of stunning Darjeeling, is a psychological thriller that revolves around the deciphering of a puzzle.
Dada (Santilal Mukherjee) makes an annual sojourn to the resort and dedicates himself to designing the perfect crossword. Approached by a local tattoo artist who is fixated on seeing the world through Dada’s eyes (Phuden Sherpa), they strike up a “cat and mouse” relationship–but is this youth a friend or a foe? It’s an enigma for the audience “to solve”!
Knock, Knock, Knock is the latest film from the director of Loev, debuting at the Busan International Film Festival 2019. In addition to winning Best Screenplay at the New York Indian Film Festival, it has received the Gold Remi at WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival, a prize previously awarded to Stephen Spielberg, Ang Lee and the Coen Brothers.
Post-screening discussion with director Sudhanshu Saria.

Word to Your Motherland
2020-10-25 19:00
Join Los-Angeles-born South Asian American Sikh recording artist SETI X for this visual journey exploring Hip-Hop Culture and its relationship with South Asian American youth and their development of self-identity.
Participants will be able to hear music and watch videos of the development of this scene from the early 80’s onwards. SETI X will take the audience on an exploration of the trajectory of artists who have pioneered this space, as well as the current musical landscapes of South Asian American artists reclaiming their culture and expressing themselves through Hip-Hop Music.
As a co-founder of Slumgods, India’s First All Elements Hip-Hop Collective, SETI X has travelled the world representing South Asian American Hip-Hop for the last 10 years. He has shared the stage with the likes of Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Public Enemy, Ziggy Marley, and more. He has appeared on CNN’s Emmy Award Winning Show “United Shades of America” with W. Kamau Bell.
This short film will be followed by a performance and Q&A session with the artist, SETI X.
