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Eisha Marjara

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Eisha Marjara
Born
Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada
NationalityCanadian
EducationConcordia University
Occupation(s)Film director, writer
Years active1994–present
Notable workDesperately Seeking Helen
Websitehttp://www.eishamarjara.com

Eisha Marjara is a Canadian film director and writer. With a background in photography, Marjara has written and directed several award-winning films, including the feature documentary Desperately Seeking Helen (1998) and The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1994).[1]

In addition to her film work, her photo series and essay on the bombing of Air India Flight 182, in which her mother and sister were killed, entitled "Remember me Nought" was featured in the fall 2013 issue of Descant magazine.[2]

Her 2016 debut novel, titled Faerie (Arsenal Pulp Press), received a star review in Publishers Weekly.[3][4]

Career

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Marjara's 1998 National Film Board of Canada docudrama Desperately Seeking Helen received critical acclaim and brought her international recognition.[5] The movie depicts Marjara on a journey to India, exploring her own Indian roots by following the career of acclaimed Bollywood movie star and vamp Helen Richardson Khan. The movie received the jury award of the Munich Documentary Film Festival in 2000 as well as the Prix de La Semaine Critique at the Locarno International Film Festival the same year.[6]

Marjara's Canadian-German co-production The Tourist, a short film, had its first showing at the 24th Rendez-vous du Cinéma Québécois in 2006.[7]

In 2017 Marjara completed the feature film Venus, a dramedy about a 30-something professional who transitions into a woman then discovers that she is the father of a fourteen-year-old boy. The 95 minute film was produced by Joe Balass of Compass Productions Inc. and executive producer Kevin Tierney (Bon Cop, Bad Cop).[1] It premiered at the British Film Institute at their Southbank event in June 2018.[8] Venus was inspired by her short film House for Sale.[9]

In 2022, Marjara wrote and directed the film Calorie.[10][11]

Marjare has been a member of the NFB/ ONF Creation group of directors.[12]

Personal life

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Marjara is the daughter of father Dr. Harinder Singh Marjara, and mother Devinder.[13] She had two sisters, Seema and Amita.[14] She grew up in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, and she lived in Trois-Rivières, Sainte-Foy, and Montreal.[15] She attended Concordia University, enrolled in Communications Studies.[16]

Her mother and her sister, Seema, were killed in the bombing of Air India Flight 182;[17] they had been flying to visit relatives.[18] Seema had just graduated from Centennial Regional High School.[19] Eisha was not on board because she was being treated for anorexia nervosa, and her father was teaching a summer course at the time.[18] Both Eisha and Amita Marjara along with father Harinder were interview subjects of the 2008 documentary Air India 182.[14]

Marjara, along with her family, is Sikh.[18]

Filmography

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  • The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1994)
  • Desperately Seeking Helen (1999)
  • The Tourist (2006)
  • Lolita Diaries (2008)
  • House for Sale (2012)
  • Un Mot tel Idéal (2016)
  • Venus (2017)
  • Calorie (2022)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "TIFF website, Eisha Marjara, article dated July 5, 2017".
  2. ^ "Eisha Marjara". Compass Productions. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  3. ^ "Faerie". Amazon. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  4. ^ "Faerie". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  5. ^ "Filmography: JA". Quick Look Films. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  6. ^ "Eisha Marjara". Realisatrices Equitables. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  7. ^ Germany, Alienus Mediaconsulting, Bonn /. "The Tourist - A Film by Eisha Marjara". www.meet-the-tourist.com. Retrieved 2018-03-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ "Southbank press release page 10" (PDF). British Film Institute. June 2018. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  9. ^ "Interview: Venus Director Eisha Marjara". Close Up Culture. May 15, 2018. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  10. ^ "'Calorie' by Eisha Marjara". Cinando. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  11. ^ Cohen, Mike (October 29, 2022). "On the set of Calorie: Motion picture to tell the emotionally packed story of Sikh-Canadian family". The Suburban. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  12. ^ Dudok de Wit, Alex (July 3, 2019). "Hundreds Of Canadian Filmmakers Declare 'Crisis' As NFB Commissioner Is Reappointed". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  13. ^ Badami, Anita Rau. Can You Hear the Nightbird Call? Penguin Books India, January 1, 2006. ISBN 0670999415, 9780670999415. p. 404.
  14. ^ a b "Air India 182 Press Kit" (). Air India 182 (film) official website. p. 11/12. Retrieved on October 22, 2014.
  15. ^ "Eisha Marjara Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine" (Archive ). Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois (RVCQ). Retrieved on November 22, 2014.
  16. ^ Black, Barbara. "Air India disaster hit Concordia hard" (Archive ). Concordia's Thursday Report. April 21, 2005. Volume 29, No. 14. Retrieved on November 22, 2014.
  17. ^ Reinhart, Anthony. "Three relatives of Air India victims revisit lost innocence" (Archive). The Globe and Mail. Wednesday June 16, 2010. Updated Thursday August 23, 2012. Retrieved on October 22, 2014.
  18. ^ a b c Reinhart, Anthony. "Three relatives of Air India victims revisit lost innocence." The Globe and Mail. Wednesday June 16, 2010. Updated Thursday August 23, 2012. Retrieved on November 22, 2014.
  19. ^ Semenak, Susan. "Happy honors grad left prom early to rest up for ill-fated flight to India." The Montreal Gazette. Wednesday June 26, 1985. p. A1. Retrieved on Google News (p. 1/111) on October 22, 2014.

Further reading

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