Television- The Land of Opportunity

Vivek Kumar | People | October 16, 2007 at 8:00 am

Hi Folks,

Here is the irony of the situation. The medium which gave us SRK, the medium which recreated SRK (I would like to believe that being a host of KBC, was the precursor for his “new” avatar in Chak De), the medium which has thrown to us fine directors, the medium which gave a lease of life to AB, the medium which got more fame for Karan than his movies did, the medium that made Jeetu’s daughter more powerful than Jumping Jack in his prime….is called, rather unfairly, the IDIOT BOX..Idiotic are those who ignore the power and the reach of this medium.

The west is no different. The medium in which breaking in is so much easier for South Asians, the medium where a person merely cracks jokes and talks to people, yet which makes them a millionaire, the medium which has created superstars of a bunch of friends from NYC, the medium where the lead guy, who would possibily pass as a villian’s henchman can get a serial named after him…is often ignored…for tinseltown. But Television with it’s royalty income is where all the big bucks are.

We recognize that and giving the devil it’s due, have decided to oranize a panel discussion in Chicago, on the opportunities that this medium throws up for South Asians and South Asian Americans (actually for all), by taking an actor from both the Indian perspective and from an American Indian perspective.

Here are more details of the event:

SAAFA will make it’s first foray to the windy city of Chicago, with
the panel discussion on the opportunites, for South Asians and South
Asian Americans, in Indian and Indian American television. More
details of the event:

Exclusive Luck Now Productions / SAAFA and Northwestern University!!

Luck Now Productions and SAAFA invite you to an
exclusive South Asian film event on the evening of
October 20th at Northwestern University, Harris Hall 107, 6-8pm.

Refer :
http://www.northwes tern.edu/ provost/committe es/classroom/
buildings/ harris.html

Please join us in the first South Asian Television event organized
by San Francisco’s SAAFA and Chicago’s Luck Now Productions at
Northwestern! The event will host speakers who have
both worked in film and television in America and India.

Deep Katdare will be present to discuss his
experience with the movie, American Desi. To date this
is the only non-studio, Indian American film to make a
net profit theatrically! Deep is regularly seen in mainstream TV
serials such as Law & Order, CSI and Over There. This MIT educated, investment banker by day job, is both an eloquent speaker and an experienced hand in the ways and means of the industry in LA and NY.

Also present will be Barkha Madan, established
television actress and former Miss India Tourism (4th place in Miss
India 1994, the year Sush came first and Ash second). With
more than a decade of TV experience, Barkha has worked
on Indian serials such as Ghar Ek Sapna, Saat Phere,
Jhansi Ki Rani, Mere Humsafer and many others others.
Barkha also made her debut in Bollywood playing a ghost
in Ram Gopal Varma’s film, Bhoot alongside Rekha, Nana
Patekar, Fardeen Khan, Ajay Devgan, Urmilla and Tanuja and also Shahi’s Indo Dutch film, Driving Miss Palme. This Army Colonel’s daughter, who is an expert kick boxer and Tai Chi proponent, along with being a Salsa dancer and candle maker, is an articulate communicator and clear and positive speaker.

Both of the above are as comfortable in the creative world as they are in the corporate side of things.

We hope to show you a glimpse of the happening and moneymaking TV
industry from a behind the scenes perspective. We will discuss the
growing international interest in India’s entertainment industry and
the changes that are happening in Bombay and NY/LA to satisfy this
hunger. Please join us in a lively event that will change your
understanding of what the opportunities (both creative and business)
for Television really is!

DON’T MISS THIS SPECIAL EVENT!

Northwestern University – Harris Hall 107
Saturday, October 20 6-8pm
IN CHICAGO

Sincerely,

Vivek “television the frontier that gave us SRK and reinvented AB” Kumar