Deepa Mehta

Actor

Date of birth:

1 Jan 1950

Height:

Spouse:

Paul Saltzman

Raees

(25 Jan 2017)

Editor

Midnight's Children

(1 Feb 2013)

Director

Cooking with Stella

(20 Apr 2010)

Writer

Videsh - Heaven on Earth

(13 Mar 2009)

Director, Executive Producer, Screenplay, Writer

Water

(9 Mar 2007)

Director, Actor, Writer

Special Appearance

1947

(10 Sep 1999)

Director, Producer, Writer

Fire

(13 Nov 1998)

Director, Writer

Bhookamp

(25 Jun 1993)

Actor

Siyasat

(1992)

Actor

Actor

Aashiqui

(23 Jul 1990)

Actor

Jurm

(13 Jul 1990)

Actor

Hero Hiralal

(21 Oct 1988)

Actor

Aaghat

(1985)

Actor

Chotelal's wife

Party

(1984)

Actor

Awards

2006

Vancouver Film Critics Circle
(Best Director Canadian Film)

2006

Bangkok International Film Festival
(Best Film)

2005

Valladolid International Film Festival
(Competition)

1997

L.A. Outfest
(Outstanding Narrative Feature)

News

Huma Qureshi to star in Zack Snyders Army Of The Dead

29 May 2019

Our homegrown Huma Qureshi seems to be the top choice for international directors. Having worked with Gurinder Chadha in Viceroys House and soon to be seen in the Deepa Mehta directed Netflix original, Leila, Huma now joins the cast of Zack Snyders Army of the Dead.Huma joins the team as the Asian lead. While details remain unknown at this juncture, Humas role in the film is significant and entirely new territory for the actress, who cant wait to start shooting for the film. The film follows a zombie outbreak in Las Vegas as a man assembles a group of mercenaries to pull off the greatest heist. Huma joins the team, with British actress Ella Purnell, Ana De La Reguera ,Theo Rossi rounding off the rest of the cast. Army of the Dead marks Zack Snyders return to the zombie genre, having previously made his directorial debut with Dawn of the Dead for Universal Pictures.

Deepa Mehta roped in to direct the boldest web series for Netflix

29 Sep 2018

Remember filmmaker Deepa Mehta? Yes the same director who had given us the Elements trilogy of Fire Earth and Water.Well, though this Indo-Canadian filmmaker isnt doing much in the Bollywood circuit, we now hear that Mehta is all set to make a directorial debut on the streaming giant Netflix. If reports are to be believed, then Deepa Mehta has been roped in to directed one the boldest ever web series for Netflix. Commenting on the same, a source close to the developments says, Yes, Deepa Mehta will be directing a series for Netflix, but no details of what exactly the show is based on have been revealed. However, it is suffice to say that this series will be one of the boldest shows ever to be shown on the Indian web world. When prodded for further details about the cast of the said show, the source goes on to add, As of now South actor Siddharth has been brought on board for the project. Apart from him no other cast details are available yet. With Deepa Mehta entering the world of web series, it certainly has become an interesting age of content creation with the audience being spoilt for choice. However, given the fact that the online medium is subject to less stringent censorship it will be certainly interesting to watch what Mehta has to offer.

Huma Qureshi to feature in Netflix original directed by Deepa Mehta

19 Aug 2018

Today with video on demand streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime becoming big in India, there have been a plethora of Bollywood celebrities migrating from films to web series. Well, now we hear that another celebrity who will make this transition is none other than Huma Qureshi.As per reports, Huma has been finalized to feature in a Netflix original that will be directed by Deepa Mehta. Though details of the said original are being kept under wraps a source close to the streaming giant says, Of late a lot of web series have been doing well. In fact, the short format series seems to be the go to flavour for the audience, and this has not gone unnoticed by the industry. Which is why, there has been a rise in number of Bollywood names featuring in the short format or web series domain. Even Huma now has joined the bandwagon with a Netflix original. Further talking about the production aspect of the show, the source adds, Though the story and plot of the same are not being revealed, it will be directed by Deepa Mehta and is expected to roll by the end of this year. Back on the work front, Huma Qureshi who was last seen in the film Dobaara: See Your Evil is yet to announce her next Bollywood outing. Also Read: REVEALED: Huma Qureshi speaks up on why Bollywood actresses maintain silence over sexual harassment

Deepa Mehta's film on the Nirbhaya incident

16 Sep 2016

Deepa Mehta came quietly to Delhi, shot her film Anatomy Of Violence on the gruesome gang rape in a moving bus in 2012 on the streets and went back to Toronto. The film is being premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this week.

Deepa's take on the gruesome crime that shook our nation's conscience attempts to look at the crime from the other side. The film examines the antecedents of the rapists, their family life and their upbringing which engendered such brutality.

Significantly the heinous crime is not shown on screen at all. The whole idea behind this tormenting take on the crime against humanity is to explore the psychology that results in such barbaric deeds.

Anatomy Of Violence has been made almost entirely with theatre actors from Delhi in the cast. The only known face in the film is that of Seema Biswas who has been seen to brilliant advantage in Deepa Mehta's Water and in Deepa's brother Dilip Mehta's Cooking With Stella . Interestingly Dilip Mehta's documentary Mostly Sunny on Sunny Leone was premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival a day before Deepa's Anatomy Of Violence .

Shabana Azmi slams the proposed anti-surrogacy bill

6 Sep 2016

The enormously empathetic Shabana Azmi, who played a lesbian in Deepa Mehta's Fire 20 years ago, now plays a lesbian's mother in Pakistani American director Fawzia Mirza's Signature Move . Shabana Azmi is not happy with the government's proposal to ban surrogate parenthood.

Says Shabana Azmi, "The anti-surrogacy bill has not been thought through. Under the guise of stopping exploitation of poor women, it is retrograde in its definition of family. What's worse is that it impacts on the rights of the LGBT community and single parents. I'm pretty sure it will not be passed in Parliament, not in its present form at least." When asked if adoption is not a viable option Shabana Azmi shoots back, "It is. But how and why should the State impose this as a no-choice? People must have the option of choice? 'G' for Government 'G' for God? Why don't they concentrate on improving the plight of poor women? We lose as many women in one year due to pregnancy complications as having 400 airplane crashes a year! Governments would fall if we had so many crashes. But since its poor rural women who are dying, no attention is being paid to maternal mortality." Adds bi-sexual filmmaker Shonali Bose of Margarita With A Straw fame, "It's absolutely outrageous. While it's true that "rent a womb" has exploited poor women, there are other ways to ensure this does not take this place and women are doing it of their own free will.

This ban targets single parents and gay people (and what is so unusual about that) and privileges heterosexual married couples. I feel everyone has the right to be a parent, and marriage should play no part in this decision."

Shabana Azmi shoots for yet another lesbian film

15 Aug 2016

Remember Fire , Deepa Mehta's super-controversial 1996 film about two lonely daughters-in-law, falling into a lesbian relationship? Shabana Azmi had played the lesbian bahu in Fire . Now 20 years later she returns in yet another lesbian drama. This time Shabana doesn't play the lesbian, though. In Pakistani writer-director-actress Fawzia Mirza's American production entitled Signature Move, Shabana plays mother to lesbian daughter Fawzia Mirza.

Fawzia introduces herself as "Lesbian, Muslim, Pakistani, actor, activist, writer, producer, lawyer & creature of passion." The film, which seems autobiographical, casts Shabana as a mother who watches television soaps all day long and seems oblivious of the fact that her daughter is a lesbian and in a relationship with Mexican girl who is a wrestler.

Last week Shabana left for Chicago for the shooting.

Sharmila Tagore, Deepa Mehta, Freida Pinto are now Oscar members

1 Jul 2016

Following an uproar on social media over the alleged majority of white and male members in the Oscars, there have been a few members added in it. The Academy has invited 683 new members, 46 percent women and 41 percent of varied race that also consists of renowned personalities from Bollywood and global celebrities with an Indian origin.

Amongst the Indian members, it includes veteran actress and former CBFC chairperson Sharmila Tagore, actress-director Deepa Mehta, international star Freida Pinto and filmmaker Asif Kapadia of documentary Amy fame. Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs extended a warm welcome to all the new members and added that this is not just a membership but a mission for which they have come together. On the other hand, there are new members from Hollywood who have joined which includes Idris Elba, best actress winner Brie Larson and Star Wars fame John Boyega. The decision was taken by the Oscar officials followed by an outrage on the internet which was trending with the title #OscarsSoWhite that pointed out the dominance of whites and males amongst the jury members.

More trouble for turbaned heroes

15 Sep 2015

Tiger Shroff who's playing a Sikh super-hero in Remo D'Souza's The Flying Jat would have to be extremely cautious about the dos and don'ts. Sikh cultural and religious organizations are up in arms against Prabhu Dheva's Singh Is Bliing for Akshay Kumar's various stunts and antics, all done in a spirit of fun and games.

Now in Deepa Mehta's Beeba Boys about a bunch of Punjabi gangsters there are situations involving Sikh characters that are bound to make the moral custodians of the Sikh community extremely unhappy.

Says a source, "In Beeba Boys we see a Sikh character using his holy kirpan (knife) to slash and murder a victim. The shot was removed from the trailer. But the scene is very much there in the film. There is bound to be trouble in India for this." Deepa Mehta is no stranger to controversies. Her Fire about a lesbian relationship between two lonely daughters-in-law of a business family in Delhi, 1947 Earth about communal riots during the Partition and Water about the widows of Varanasi raised the hackles of fundamentalists. Deepa's last film Midnight's Children also got itself into a serious spot.

Beeba Boys is already nettling the Sikh community.

"We must wait to see how it goes for Deepa in India. The censor board will remove the objectionable scenes if required," says a source close to the censor board.

Randeep Hooda who plays the lead in Beeba Boyz is very keen to get the film released in India. Not too many know this. But Beeba Boys was to be originally made with Akshay Kumar in the lead.

Manoj Bajpayee to feature in gay love-making scene

10 Jan 2015

We saw Shabana Azmi and Nandita Das making love inside a mosquito net in Deepa Mehta's Fire . And we saw Randeep Hooda and Saqib Saleem exchange a shocking kiss in that segmented stunner Bombay Talkies . Hansal Mehta's Aligarh could be the first mainstream Hindi film to feature a full-fledged gay love-making scene between two men. The film directed by Hansal Mehta recreates the tormented life of the real-life gay professor Srinivas Ramchandra Siras who was expelled from his work at Aligarh University weeks before retirement after being caught on camera making love.

Says a source close to the project, "The crucial love-making at the end would be filmed and not just suggested on screen. Manoj Bajpayes who plays the part of the professor is a brave and fearless actor. He had no qualms about doing the scene." Hansal Mehta who directs Aligarh says, "Manoj will go by the requirement of the script. But the conviction to do what has to be done must come from within the actor. When I was shooting for Shahid it was Rajkummar Rao who suggested that he strip down to his bones for an interrogation scene. The actor has to be convinced about the requirement of the scene."

Hansal feels Aligarh would be his toughest film to date. "We have Article 377 and that means every act of homosexual love-making is criminal. To make a film about an academic who was gay is not an easy task. You've to constantly remind audiences that though teachers are supposed to set an example, they are, at the end of the day, only human."

Randeep Hooda plays gangster Bindy Johal in Deepa Mehta's film

23 Aug 2014

The prolific Deepa Mehta has done it again! Made a film that is likely to provoke extreme responses. In the year 2000, Deepa Mehta had started Water in Varanasi which had to be stalled when religious fundamentalists objected to the film. Deepa's Fire and Midnight's Children were also controversial works of art.

Now in the film titled Beeba Boys, Deepa has shot the life of the dreaded Indo-Canadian criminal Bindy Johal who was brutally gunned down in 1998. Bindy, a heroic legend among the Indians in Canada, is considered an extremely controversial figure. Hero for some, a sociopath for others, it would be interesting to see how Deepa Mehta has interpreted the character's dark and criminal life. Bindy's band of Punjabi bad boys has also been featured in the film.

Randeep Hooda who plays Bindy Johal spent weeks studying Johal's life and crimes and why he was considered a criminal by many and a hero among the Indian community in Canada.