Provoked (film)
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| Provoked | |
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| Directed by | Jag Mundhra |
| Produced by | Sunanda Murali Manohar |
| Written by | Carl Austin, Rahila Gupta |
| Starring | Aishwarya Rai, Naveen Andrews, Nandita Das, Robbie Coltrane & Miranda Richardson |
| Music by | A. R. Rahman |
| Cinematography | Madhu Ambat |
| Editing by | Sanjeev Mirajkar |
| Distributed by | Private Moments Ltd. |
| Release date(s) | April 6, 2007 (UK) |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Provoked is a forthcoming UK based English language film, directed by Jag Mundhra. It stars Aishwarya Rai, Naveen Andrews, Miranda Richardson, Robbie Coltrane, Nandita Das and Steve McFadden. This film is loosely based on the true story of Kiranjit Ahluwalia who killed her abusive husband.
Cinematography for the film is being handled by Madhu Ambat. The film's score and soundtrack has been composed by A. R. Rahman, and the theme song for the film, "Alive", was composed by Rahman and sung by Karen David, who has a small cameo in the film. Shot in London, the film is currently in the final stages of post-production, and is to be released in April (Easter Weekend) 2007.
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[edit] Synopsis
Unable to bear the brutality and repeated rapes by her alcoholic husband, a battered Punjabi housewife and mother of two, Kiranjit Ahluwalia (Aishwarya Rai) sets fire to her abusive husband, Deepak Ahluwalia (Naveen Andrews) and kills him unintentionally. Charged with murder, she is sentenced to life imprisonment where she befriends her cellmate, a wealthy white woman named Veronica Scott (Miranda Richardson), from whom she learns English. Her cell mate is so moved by her story that she asks her step-brother, Edward Foster (Robbie Coltrane), a highly respected Queen's Counsel, to file her appeal. Her case comes to the notice of a group of South Asian social worker running an under funded organization called the "Southall Black Sisters". They bring her plight to the attention of the media by organizing rallies to gather public support for her freedom. She is ultimately freed by the judicial system in a landmark case called "Regina vs. Ahluwalia", that redefined the word PROVOCATION in the case of a battered woman. She is reunited with her children and subsequently given an award by the Prime Minister's wife for her crusade against domestic violence.
[edit] Press Screenings
This film was screened in the Marché Du filmCannes Film Market during the Cannes Film Festival in April, 2006 . Aishwarya Rai was present with director Jag Mundhra to promote the film through press conferences and parties. In June, the film opened the 2006 IIFA (International Indian Film Academy) Film Festival in Dubai. The screening was attended by many prominent Bollywood personalities including Amitabh Bachan and Shabana Azmi, as well as by international media. Aishwarya Rai flew down from her shooting schedule for the day to attend the premiere.
[edit] Criticism
The Southall Black Sisters who helped the real-life Kiranjit Ahluwalia, have criticised the film for being riddled with "factual and legal inaccuracies". Two members from the group Pragna Patel and Rahila Gupta, whose characters have been merged to create one person, played by the Indian actress Nandita Das, said it took "a lot of artistic license".
After seeing the film Ms Patel is said to have told the Oberserver newspaper "I cringe a bit because I was so closely involved. Sometimes I think people should rise to the challenge of reflecting real life better. My view is that the reality is far more interesting."
Rahila Gupta, who co-wrote Circle of Light and the script, added: "It's a shame that film is an artistic form in which you have to make a fair amount of compromises to make it happen." She also criticised the film's characterisation as "one-dimensional", and the portrayal of Kiranjit Ahluwalia's husband as an alcoholic.
The cinematic licenses taken are that Kiranjit Ahluwalia plays a middle-class housewife instead of a factory worker, as she was in real life. That Pragna Patel and Rahila Gupta's characters have been merged to create one person, played by the Indian actress Nandita Das. That the film uses Americanised legal terminology.
The director 'Jag' Jagmohan Mundhra in his defence said "Even if you tell a true story, a true story is never really a true story. How do you define the truth? None of us were really there and obviously the recollections of people who were there have changed now. Ultimately I do have to tell an engaging story. If I can't tell an engaging story no matter what cause is at stake, nobody will see it."
Source: Aishwarya's domestic abuse film criticised by Southall Black Sisters
[edit] Credits
[edit] Cast
| Actor/Actress | Character |
|---|---|
| Aishwarya Rai | Kiranjeet Ahluwalia |
| Naveen Andrews | Deepak Ahluwalia |
| Miranda Richardson | Veronica Scott |
| Robbie Coltrane | Edward Foster |
| Nandita Das | Radha Dalal |
| Raji James | Anil |
| Karen David | Asha |
| Lorraine Bruce | Doreen |
| Maxine Finch | Lula |
| Nicholas Irons | PC O'Connell |
| Judith Jacob | Guard Taylor |
| Deborah Moore | Jackie |
| Guy Siner | Prosecutor |
| Rebecca Pidgeon | Miriam |
| Steve McFadden | DS Ron Meyers |
[edit] Crew
- Director: Jag Mundhra
- Screenplay: Carl Austin & Rahila Gupta
- Producer: Sunanda Murali Manohar
- Music: A. R. Rahman
- Cinematography: Madhu Ambat
- Editing: Sanjeev Mirajkar
- Costumes: Sarah Tapscott
- Theme Song Vocalist and Lyricist: *Karen David
[edit] Trivia
- The film is based on the true story of a woman named Kiranjeet Ahluwalia whose story was adapted into a book by Rahila Gupta.
- The film finished shooting in 32 days.
- Both Aishwarya Rai and Naveen Andrews starred together in Bride and Prejudice. Andrews played the role of Rai's sister's suitor.
- Mr Jagmohan Mundhra (the director) is frequently referred to as "soft-porn king", on account of his earlier films.
