NEW YORK,NY - Emerging as the next generation of Asian filmmaking visionaries, directing duo Gayatri Bajpai & Nirav Bhakta have seen rapid success with their short film ‘Halwa.’ The film took home top honors for the HBO Asian Pacific American Visionaries short film competition. Out of more than 200 films, ‘Halwa’ was narrowed down by a panel of HBO executives & Asian American Industry leaders. This is the first time a South Asian film...
has ever been honored or been part of the visionaries program.
‘Halwa’ tells the story of an older closeted Indian immigrant woman who rekindles a treasured relationship with a childhood companion through Facebook messages, until her abusive husband takes notice.
In celebration of Asian Pacific American heritage month, the film is now available on HBO and all of it’s streaming platforms. “South Asian culture in the media too often takes the form of stereotypes played for laughs, with older Indian characters always arranging someone’s marriage. With our film, we hope to draw our audience into the quiet psychology of these characters, and share what makes them human. As a culture it was also important for us to break taboo about the quiet lives of immigrant LGBTQ people, and bring their narratives to the forefront, and that in its truest essence is celebrating what makes us Asian American”.
‘Halwa’ tells the story of an older closeted Indian immigrant woman who rekindles a treasured relationship with a childhood companion through Facebook messages, until her abusive husband takes notice.
In celebration of Asian Pacific American heritage month, the film is now available on HBO and all of it’s streaming platforms. “South Asian culture in the media too often takes the form of stereotypes played for laughs, with older Indian characters always arranging someone’s marriage. With our film, we hope to draw our audience into the quiet psychology of these characters, and share what makes them human. As a culture it was also important for us to break taboo about the quiet lives of immigrant LGBTQ people, and bring their narratives to the forefront, and that in its truest essence is celebrating what makes us Asian American”.
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