I bet you haven't heard this story before, perhaps. 'One novel, same subject and two separate feature films with the same actresses' is the intriguing introduction of Shamim Sarif's lesbian tale. Both films "I can't think straight" and "The World Unseen" featuring Water's Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth, written and directed by Shamim Sarif, born in London to South African Indian parents, will be released in November 2008, writes Pervaiz Alam.
"I Can't Think Straight," portrays the unexpected romance between Tala (Lisa Ray), a vivacious Christian woman from Palestine, and Leyla (Sheetal Sheth), a shy Muslim woman from India. When they meet in London just before Tala's planned wedding, sparks fly between them and their families.
One novel two films
Lisa Ray and Sheetal ShethShamim Sarif, who herself is a lesbian and lives with her partner Hanan Kattan, wrote a novel in 2006 entitled "I Can't Think Straight" that later became the subject of her two films. Both formed a company Enlightenment Productions and made "The World Unseen" with Lisa Ray and Sheetal Sheth. The film went on to many festivals and won a lot of praise.
So, Sarif's both directorial efforts are based on her novel of the same name and both feature the same actresses, but the stories and titles of two films are different. Both release in the same month- November, followed by one and other. Incredible!
"The World Unseen"
Set in 1950s South Africa at the beginning of apartheid, free-spirited Amina (Sheetal Sheth) has broken all the rules of her own conventional Indian community and the new apartheid-led government, by running a cafe with Jacob, her black business partner. When she meets Miriam (Lisa Ray), a young wife and mother, their unexpected attraction pushes Miriam to question the rules that bind her to a traditional role. As Amina helps Miriam's sister-in-law to hide from the police, a chain of events is set in motion that changes both women forever.
Both films are released in the USA by Here Films, the theatrical distribution Here Networks.
All women team
Another interesting aspect of these two films is that both have been written, directed, financed and produced entirely by women. Producer Hanan Kattan and co-producer Brigid Olen have teamed up on this project along with associate producer Daisy Allsop. Lisa Tchenguiz-Imerman and Katherine Priestley serve as Executive Producers.
Shamim Sarif, Hanan Kattan and Indian director Tanuja Chandra appeared together at a Nehru Centre programme in London this year and shared their film-making experience, including 'I can't think straight'.