Water’s director Deepa Mehta thanks India, Canada

Director Deepa Mehta, whose ‘Water’ has been nominated for the Oscars in the ‘best foreign language film’ category, has thanked India and Canada, saying she is “indebted” to both the countries.

“For me, the film is a combination. I have said many times that if India gives me the passion for the stories that I make, Canada gives me the freedom to expresses those stories. I am indebted to both the countries,” said Mehta after hitting the homeland to promote the movie.

As ‘Water’ gets all set to contest the ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ category at the Academy Awards on February 25 as Canada’s official entry, Mehta has hit homeland to promote the movie.

‘Water’ now competes with Algeria’s “Days of Glory”, Denmark’s “After the Wedding”, Germany’s “The Lives of Others,” and Mexico’s “Pan’s Labyrinth” at the coveted trophy.

Mehta will tour several other cities in India before flying to Hollywood for the Oscars.

The Hindi-language ‘Water’ deals with the oppressed lives of widows in the murky ghettos of Varanasi set in 1930s.

Such widow homes-where tonsured women lived, draped in a single piece of white cloth, begging and prostituting-were considered purgatories for widows whose sins supposedly killed their husbands.

Apart from a change of setting, there was, inevitably, an entire change in cast and crew. The lead roles are being played by Bollywood heartthrob John Abraham, Lisa Ray and Seema Biswas.

Abraham said the film was a learning experience, and shedding his hunk-image was the difficult part.

“I did many workshops to learn Vedic hymns and to learn how to wear a dhoti and to play the flute. The image that people have of John Abraham is one of a biker boy, who would wear jeans and stuff. To an extent, I myself was caught up in that impression. So, I had to work hard to break it. I learnt a lot while working on the movie,” said John.

Two days into the shooting in 2000, hardline Hindu protesters stormed Mehta’s locale in Varanasi, burnt the sets and issued death threats, saying the film distorted Indian culture.

In 2004, she took her production to Sri Lanka, but kept the shooting schedules secret and even filmed under a false name. Mehta found production support and freedom to shoot in Canada where she is based.

“Water” completes Mehta’s film trilogy that includes ‘Fire’ and ‘Earth’.

‘Fire’, which portrayed a lesbian relationship between two Indians, was temporarily pulled from distribution in India after Hindu groups attacked theatres showing it.

— ANI

 

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