Amu (2005)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Shonali Bose

Writer:

Shonali Bose (writer)

Release Date:

7 January 2005 (India)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

When the past overwhelms the future...

Plot:

Amu is the story of Kaju, a twenty-one-year-old Indian American woman who returns to India to visit...

Plot Keywords:

Indian American | Genocide | Single Mother | Immigrant | Carnage

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Konkona Sen Sharma	...	Kaju "Amu"
Yashpal Sharma	...	Gobind
Brinda Karat	...	Keya
Ankur Khanna	...	Kabir
Chaiti Ghosh	...	Tuki
Aparna Roy	...	Grandmother
Ashish Ghosh	...	Uncle
Ruma Ghosh	...	Aunt
Loveleen Mishra	...	Leelavati
Brajesh Mishra	...	Chachaji
Bharat Kapoor	...	Arun Sehgal
Lushin Dubey	...	Meera Sehgal
Rajendra Gupta	...	KK
Ganeve Rajkotia	...	Shanno Kaur
Kuljit Singh	...	Gurbachan Singh
Ekta Sood	...	Amu
Harshit Sood	...	Arjun
Mohini Mathur	...	Durga
Kirandeep Sharma	...	Shanti Kumar
Amita Udgata	...	Widow
Kusum Haidar	...	Widow
Avijit Dutt	...	Neel
Subhashini Ali	...	Lalitha
Susmit Sarkar	...	Siddharth
Lara Ahsan Chandni	...	Stephanian
Maxwell Chhetry	...	Stephanian
Subhashish Mukherjee	...	Stephanian
Sanjay Kumar	...	Pappu

Directed by
Shonali Bose

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Shonali Bose		writer

Produced by
Sanjay Bhattacharjee	....	line producer
Atiya Bose	....	co-producer
Shonali Bose	....	producer
Aidan Hill	....	co-producer
Gurdip Malik	....	executive producer
Bedabrata Pain	....	executive producer
Vibhu Srivastava	....	co-line producer: Los Angeles

Original Music by
Nandlal Nayak

Cinematography by
Lourdes Ambrose

Film Editing by
Bob Brooks

Production Design by
Ayesha Punvani

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Vibhu Srivastava	....	third assistant director

Art Department
Ali Abbas Zafar	....	set designer

Sound Department
David Kitchens	....	sound supervisor
Nicole Lazaroff	....	boom operator
Resul Pookutty	....	sound designer
Resul Pookutty	....	sound
Amala Popuri	....	utility sound
Eric Reuveni	....	sound re-recording mixer
Ben Zarai	....	supervising sound editor

Camera and Electrical Department
Kartik Vijay	....	assistant camera

Editorial Department
Nerina Penzhorn	....	first assistant editor: film

Other crew
Mia Trachinger	....	creative consultant
Aldo Velasco	....	creative consultant

Production Companies

• Jonai Productions

Distributors

• Emerging Pictures (2007) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Shringar Films (2005) (India) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Juniper Post  sound post-production
• Warmflash Productions Ltd.  trailer

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

India | USA

Language:

Bengali | English | Hindi | Punjabi

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

India:A

Filming Locations:

Delhi, India

Company:

Jonai Productions

Authentic and Provocative ! A must see movie for a Unique Cinematic Experience!!!

I like "Amu the movie" tremendously. The movie has so many layers that it is difficult for me to pinpoint to a single reason for its impact. As a passive observer of compelling and authentic portrayal of a journey of a Girl finding her true identity, I had suspended my reality and enjoyed the experience. As an agitated follower of the injustice highlighted in the movie, I was incensed by the implication of tacit support . Yet as an observer of slow revelation of plot line, I was enthralled. The acting, the directing, the photography and the editing/music were totally endearing. The fact that there some people in the audience crying and others sat in silence after the movie had finished, showed that the movie had indeed touched all of us. It is hard to believe that Shonali is a first time director, who captured on celluloid a slice of life that was actually manufactured. Konkona Sen was spectacular but Lovleen Mishra, Brinda Karat, Chaiti Ghosh, Ashish Ghosh, Aparna Roy were all fantastic.

Finally, I would like to say, that in South Africa a unique experiment is taking place, the Truth and Reconciliation Commision. In India too, the wounds of destructive, ethnic cleansing violence go deep and are tremendously complex. It is indeed a bold step of shining the light on a dark period of recent history but "Amu the Movie" , is the step is taken in the right direction.

I look in great anticipation to others all over the world following in this film's footsteps and making more creative and more bold choices as Shonali has done in "Amu". I also look forward to many more viewers enjoying the tremendous journey of "Amu".

Berkeley