CLOSING NIGHT GALA

Azra (Amrit Kaur) flies back to her ancestral home in Pakistan to be reunited with her grieving mother, with whom she has a strained relationship. Struggling to fit the image of the perfect daughter, Azra finds herself transported, through Bollywood-inspired flashbacks, to 1960s Karachi, sparking a connection between her mother’s wild youth to her own life in 90s Canada.

SERIES PRESENTATION

Join us at Regent Street Cinema to preview the first three episodes of this madcap comedy series from Punjabi YouTube sensation Jus Reign. It follows the adventures of a young Sikh millennial whose growing social media popularity brings unexpected chaos to his life..

FEATURES

From compelling dramas and timeless romance to unique Science Fiction and stirring coming-of-age tales, our feature film programme has something for everyone.

Acclaimed filmmaker Iram Parveen Bilal returns with Wakhri (One of a Kind), a tale of a Pakistani teacher turned social media star, inspired by true events. Winner of the Toronto International Film Festival NETPAC award, Sthal (A Match) is a poignant drama about teenage women confronting tradition. Paying homage to Richard Linklater’s, Before Sunrise we celebrate British Asian talent with the World Premiere of, Before Nikkah, a charming romance that is bound to leave you grinning for ear to ear.

DOCS

We bring you two very different but equally compelling documentaries. Parama: A Journey with Aparna Sen, shines’s a light on the life and career on one of India’s most prominent woman filmmakers and Tight: The World of Indian Bodybuilding explores a rapidly changing Indian society through the increasingly popular sport of bodybuilding.

SHORTS

Celebrate and support the work of emerging Asian talent in the UK with our New Brit-Asian shorts programme, showcasing a range of stories from South Asian Britain.

The legendary LGBTQIA+ showcase is back with a fresh crop of inspiring and thought- provoking Too Desi Too Queer short films. Finally, come to the ICA to see the brilliant shorts vying for the Satyajit Ray Short Film Competitions £1000 prize.

SOUTH ASIAN XR STORIES

Building on the festival’s successful first foray into the work of XR (virtual and augmented reality) last year, we are back for another fascinating showcase of local and South Asian XR at Birmingham Open Media, curated by Taran 3D. You don’t have to be an expert – everyone is welcome.

Admission Free