Ashvin Kumar | PassionforCinema

The youngest of the six Oscar nominated directors from India, the first Indian to be nominated at the European Film Academy and to receive honours by the British Academy of Film and Television (BAFTA).

Ashvin Kumar's Blog

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Slumdog Millionaire – a post hype review
(this was written a week before the oscars) A pip-squeak of dissent is peeping through the fog of euphoria. Slumdog was going straight to DVD but it was pulled from that fate and lo – 10 Oscar noms? I said, Really? If people like their social realism packaged like a cake of detergent with large letters and bold graphic design, so be it. Flock to the cinemas and...
by Ashvin Kumar at March 5th, 2009 at 12:03 am
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The Oscar reaction
The Oscars elicit two broad reactions from the media and film industry in India. The media mourns our annual failure at achieving the acme of global cinema recognition, our film industry says bugger off, its no crowning glory we have our own vibrant industry and we don’t need em. In my opinion both are equally shrill and misplaced reactions. First off, the Oscars...
by Ashvin Kumar at October 24th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
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The Forest, my film and save our jungles
My next one is a feature film – its called The Forest. This film is about our inadequacies when confronted by the forces of nature and our frightening ignorance as to the effects of its disruption. Instead of preaching to the converted I thought that perhaps if I was able to spread the word about the wildlife crisis that is staring us in the face, it would be...
by Ashvin Kumar at October 24th, 2007 at 06:10 am
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Little Terrorist – Oscar
This little film has done so much for me that now as its fantiastic run continues in festivals around the world, its high time it was made available to whoever wants to see it for free. To read more about the film and its making please become a member of the facebook group associated with the movie. Little Terrorist: Jamal, a 12 year old Muslim Pakistani mistakenly crosses...
by Ashvin Kumar at October 7th, 2007 at 06:10 am
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The Forest – a sneak preview of my new film
Be the first to see a sneak preview trailer of The Forest, coming soon to theatres around the world. You can watch it on facebook or youtube… The Forest is a grizzly thriller about human frailty articulated through man’s conflict with nature; our inadequacies when confronted by such forces and our frightening ignorance as to the effects of its disruption. [youtube]D91xzHpUMqs[/youtube]
by Ashvin Kumar at October 6th, 2007 at 02:10 am
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Thoughts on writing / editing / acting / directing
It can get pretty lonely out there, on a set – particularly the first time. On my first film which involved taking a bunch of very dedicated, professional yet raw foreigners to the wilderness of ladakh on a hopeless budget and a very guerrilla experience, in which I their ‘leader’ had really no filmmaking experience to rub together, it was baptism by...
by Ashvin Kumar at October 5th, 2007 at 09:10 am
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All the world’s a stage but our cinema isn’t on it…?
Cinema from Iran, China, Mexico even Korea, Thailand are producing artistically integral and exciting, socially motivated cinema that have created sustainable creative industries within their countries. These films earn export dollars globally, defy cultural and language barriers at a time when the global appetite for all things South Asian is at an all time high, gross...
by Ashvin Kumar at October 5th, 2007 at 06:10 am