Iffi's opening film strikes 'humanism' note

PANAJI: If international film festivals are all about integration, then Iffi struck the right note with its opening film 'West is West'.
The film may be a sequel to the popular 'East is East' which was made almost 10 years ago, nevertheless, it carried forward the message of humanism and the essential oneness of man in a no-holds-barred manner. And needless to say, that's a message that needs to be hollered-either subtly or hysterically-from all forms of communication today.
As Leslie Udwin, producer, 'West is West', says, "There's not a shred of politics, not a shred of religion in my film. But there's loads of humanism..."
According to Dutta, the movie 'West is West' carries forward her entire philosophy of filmmaking. "I want to make films because I want people to become more tolerant in an increasingly troubled world," says Udwin. 'West is West' did manage to strike a chord with the auditorium almost house-full with film buffs.
The film traces the return of Jehangir Khan (Om Puri) to his roots. The ordinary Pakistani farmer had left his country almost thirty years ago to build anew with a British wife and a family of sons and daughters who are cultural outcasts, both in England and in Pakistan. But that's not the end of Jehangir Khan's exodus tales. He had left behind a wife (Ila Arun) and a family in Pakistan too who have nothing to offer him but reproach for their abandoned status.
'West is West' is a sensitive story about building bridges, understanding cultures and reconnecting in a world that's growing more and more insular. But more importantly, it's a story about a dream that needs to be real.
Based on the experiences of Ayub Din Khan, the writer of the film, 'West is West' posits a world where borders and superficial differences all cease to matter. In a seminal sequence of the film, Jehangir Khan's two wives-one Brit, the other Pakistani-carry on a perfect conversation with each other and move from a position of extreme hostility to empathy, without understanding each other's language. As does the teenage Sajid (excellent performance by Aqib Khan) who had nothing but four-letter words for the 'dump' called Pakistan which he was forced to visit in order to find his roots. When he leaves, he bids a tearful farewell to his newfound friends and family.
The film is scheduled for a February 2011 release in India and even has a third sequel-East is West-on the anvil.