Tongues on Fire is an annual film festival celebrating the excellence, performances and achievements of Asian women in cinema. Established in 1997, Tongues on Fire was originally set up to provide a fresh perspective on the contributions of Asian women in the film industry. It takes no small pleasure in exploding the stereotypes often perpetuated by mainstream views.

The festival highlights the great diversity of talent through film screenings, debates and interviews. It includes a retrospective work by an exceptional figure in the film industry. The festival is also proud to encourage new potential by creating opportunities for students wishing to take part in seminars and workshops.

Tongues on Fire continues to provide and enjoy a real focus on the variety and importance of work produced by Asian women from Britain and the Asian Diaspora.

Festival Directors: Pushpinder Chowdhury and Harvinder Nath

Sat 1 Mar 3:40 NFT1; Wed 5 Mar 6:15 NFT1

Deven (Om Puri), a small-town Hindi Teacher, travels to Bhopal to capture for posterity the work of his mentor, the great Urdu poet Nur (Shashi Kapoor). He finds a bizarre gathering of hangers-on, greedy family members and a conniving second wife (Azmi) taking advantage of his situation. Although his mission fails, the teacher is privy to a larger vision of how art and life disintegrate, tragically and even laughably, with the passing of time.

Sat 1 Mar 6:10 NFT1; Mon 3 Mar 8:30 NFT3

In a daring scoop, reporter Jai Singh (Marc Zuber) buys tribal girl Kamla (Deepti Naval), bringing her back to Delhi, as evidence of slave trading. He installs her in his home, worsening his already shaky marriage to Sarita (Azmi). When Kamla innocently asks Sarita what price she has fetched Sarita begins to see her husband as an exploiter and to question her own 'value'.

Fri 7 Mar 6:20 NFT1; Sat 15 Mar 3:30 NFT2

In old Lucknow, Anjuman (Azmi), living with her mother and siblings, earns a pittance through the painstaking art of chikan embroidery. Her aunt, who heads the large crumbling house they live in, constantly berates Anjuman's family for being a burden, and when a potential romance with an aristocratic neighbour is crushed, Anjuman resolves to take control of her own destiny.

Joint ticket available (Fri 7 Mar screening of Congregation only) with Shabana Azmi in conversation, £12.00, concs £9.00.

Mon 10 Mar 6:20 NFT2; Tue 18 Mar 8:40 NFT3;
Mon 24 Mar 8:40 NFT2

In crowded modern-day Delhi, traditional homemaker Radha (Azmi) faces an emotional challenge when spirited young sister-in-law Sita (Nandita Das) comes to stay. Both are neglected by their retrospective husbands; childless Radha's spiritually minded spouse (Kulbushan Kharbanda) has long chosen celibacy, while Sita's husband (Jaaved Jaaferi) married under family pressure and treasures his mistress. The bereft women are drawn into a relationship of passion tinged with terror.

Sun 23 Mar 8:40 NFT2; Mon 31 Mar 6:20 NFT2

Living near ruined ancient settlements Yamini (Azmi) tends to her ailing mother, living in hope of the arrival of her distant cousin, once promised to Yamini in marriage, quite unaware that he has married another. When three friends visit the ruins, one of them Subhash, pretends to be the long-awaited fiancée, allowing the old woman to die in peace; but how long should he continue the masquerade?

Fri 28 Mar 5:45 NFT2; Sun 30 Mar 8:30 NFT3

In Karachi, British wildlife conservationist Alistair (James Wilby) and his wife Hannah (Melissa Leo), daughter of a powerful US senator, are desperate to have a child. Her aristocratic friend Samira (Azmi) takes her to a fertility shrine whose head priest asks her to return with her husband. In their three-day visit, they undergo strange rituals; Kamal, the boy looking after them, makes love to a partly drugged Hannah and she becomes pregnant…

Wed 26 Mar 6:00 NFT2; Fri 28 Mar 8:20 NFT2

This landmark film launched both Shyam Benegal and Azmi on their illustrious, and often intertwined, cinematic careers. Pampered college student Surya (Anant Nag) is ordered by his autocratic father to move to their ancestral village property.

Bored, he starts an affair with his needy but attractive cleaning woman, Lakshmi (Azmi), which ends when his parents find him a bride. But Surya is caught in a vortex of emotions when Lakshmi reveals she is pregnant.

Mon 17 Mar 8:10 NFT2; Thu 20 Mar 5:50 NFT2

In a Bihar village, three omen face individual hardship and harassment. Young bride Ketaki (Madhuri Dixit) watches helplessly as her loving husband becomes an abusive drunk. Her sister-in-law Chandravati (Azmi) is devastated when her husband of 17 years decides to abandon her to become a holy man. Kranti, a servant becomes a prostitute to repay her husband's debts. The three decide to fight back.

Wed 5 Mar 6:30 Nehru Centre

Pride, prejudice and ignorance lead Komal and her unborn child to death. Sanjay, contracts HIV following a casual affair. Racked with guilt and shame, he deserts his family following a casual affair. This film highlights the fact that HIV is not a disease that just affects prostitutes and gay men.

Introduced by Karamjeet Ballagan, cultural director of Ek Pal and guest panellist Parminder Sekhon who works as a client support services worker at Naz Project London. Parminder also works as an actress and has a theatre company called Mehtab.

Naz project London is a HIV/AIDS and sexual health voluntary agency working with black, minority ethnic and refugee communities in London.

Sun 9 Mar Harrow Arts Centre
Fri 4 Apr Cranford Community College (by invitation only)

Gurinder Chadha, the acclaimed director of Bend it Like Beckham explores the ignored face of Los Angeles in this Thanksgiving tale of four diverse American families. The joys and tensions that manifest when family members get together show that at the end of the day we are all the same, despite our race.

Mon 10 Mar SOAS (by invitation only)

Garam Hawa remains today one of the most poignant films ever to be made on India's partition. Based on an unpublished story by famous Urdu write Ismat Chugtai, the story was developed and scripted by Kaifi Azmi. Putting his valuable experience as a union leader with shoe factory workers to use, Kaifi Azmi turned the protagonist from being merely an observer into someone whose livelihood, and with it his entire world, crumbles thus highlighting and personalising the trauma. Tongues on Fire pay a Tribute to Kaifi Azmi with the launch of a specially compiled CD. Speakers include Shabana Azmi and Ralph Russell, with a poetry recital by Amina Yaqin. Chaired by Dr. Rachel Dwyer.

Young Tongues is an opportunity for young British-Asian film makers to showcase their work at a prestigious venue like NFT, and create a platform to network within the industry.

This year's Young Tongues event kicks off with a screening of Anita and Me, a film written by Meera Syal, one of UK's most popular women amongst young British Asians today.

12 Mar NFT2 (by invitation only)

As the daughter of the only Punjabi family in a small English village in the early '70s, Meena (Chandeep Uppal) is stuck with a foot in two worlds. Much to her parents' chagrin however, Meea is no angel: she fibs, commits minor thefts and misbehaves, sometimes to the horror of her prim and proper Aunties. She is alternately amused and embarrassed by her comically quirky family and their love of the traditional ways. At the same time, she idolises local lewd flower, Anita Rutter (Anna Brewster) the most outrageous, sassy, beautiful blonde in town, who runs a gang called "the wenches". Meena wheedles her way into Anita's life, but the arrival of a baby brother, teenage hormones, impending entrance exams for the posh grammar school and a motorcycling rebel without a future threaten to turn Meena's salad days sour. Anita & Me paints a comic, poignant, compassionate and colourful portrait of village life in the era of flares, glam rock and Jackie Magazine.

The film is followed by a question and answer session with Meera Syal.

Satwant Gill chairs the afternoon programme where the young film makers work is showcased and includes:
YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW
PONDICHERRY
DELEMA (Inexplicable)
ONE SMALL HOP
THE BEST DREAMERS

Thu 13 Mar Apna Ghar (Community Screening) by invitation only; Fri 4 April Warner Village Cinema; Tue 15 Apr Phoenix Arts; Wed 16 Apr Phoenix Arts

This epic tale from the Mahabharata is a quest for power, a story of lust, love and sacrifice. For seven long years Paravasu (Jackie Shroff) has forsaken his wife and family to perform a mahayagya (fire sacrifice) to appease the gods and get rains for the drought-ridden land.

His arch rival Yavakri (Nagarjuna) returns home triumphant after ten years of meditation, armed with the boon of eternal knowledge bestowed upon him by Lord Indra (Amitabh Bachchan). The resentful Yavakri embarks upon a scheme for ultimate revenge at any cost.

Fri 14 Mar ICA 6:30; Mon 24 Mar Waterman's 7:30

Without doubt the most revolutionary South Asian film of the year, Asoka Handagama presents a graphically disturbing image of contemporary Sri Lanka where women are the under class, suffering under the weight of tradition and male desire. In the midst of this conformity is an edgy story of transexuality. Manju is a boyish car mechanic who can hold his own in the male world of the garage.

After work he returns home to his young wife Kusum. They are happy together, however Manju conceals a secret identity from his wife: he was born a woman. One day after an accident Manju's secret is exposed to a doctor who becomes obsessed with him. Unable to have him, the doctor breaks Manju's secret to his chauvinist boss setting in train a series of events which force Manju to face up to a wife who has been misled and a community marked by homophobia and sexism.

Sat 15 Mar ICA 6:30; Sat 22 Mar Waterman's 6:30

An unexpectedly or untimely phone call, to Manu brings unpleasant news of death, sickness or some misfortune. In the Gujral household a mistaken call from a young boy trying desperately to reach his mother disrupts the peace and tranquillity of their home. Sati and Gopi Gujral are a couple in their fifties, leading a placid life. Sati is a part time music teacher in a school for Tibetan children run the Tibetan government- in- exile and Gopi is a doctor in a government hospital who is also the visiting doctor at the District Jail. Their only son, Ashok is a pilot with the Indian Air Force and calls home at an appointed time, unerringly every week. Ashok's call itself gives Sati immense joy and its regularity brings her great comfort because she finds untimely calls distressing.

Sun 16 Mar ICA 2:00; Sun 23 Mar Waterman's 4:15; Tue 25 Mar Waterman's 7:45; Sun 13 Apr Phoenix Arts; Mon 14 Apr Phoenix Arts

A bus rolling down a narrow, winding, hilly road is stopped by Hindu extremists looking for Muslims who have burned down a Hindu village. Their abusive invasion instils terror amongst the passengers. A Jew tries to pass himself as a Hindu, and through a series of innocent moments, a Muslim photographer is mistaken for an unescorted young Tamil woman's husband. A tentative attraction grows between the two contrasting personalities, Meenakshi (Konkana Sensharma), a conservative Brahmin girl and Raja (Rahul Bose) a contemporary wildlife cameraman. Confused and scared, they don't know where the journey will lead them.

19 Mar Westminster University, Harrow (by invitation only) 3:00

A collective film by 11 directors from different countries and cultures portraying 11 visions of the tragic events which occurred in New York City on September 11, 2001.

11 episodes by (in order of appearance)
SAMIRA MAKHMALBAF
CLAUDE LELOUCH
YOUSSEF CHAHINE
DANIS TANOVIC
IDRISSA OUEDRAOGO
KEN LOACH
ALEJANDRO GONZÁLEZ IÑÁRRITU
AMOS GITAI
MIRA NAIR
SEAN PENN
SHOHEI IMAMURA

The films evoke the sheer scale of the shock wave which followed September 11, testifying to the resonance of the event throughout the world, conveying the human dimension of this tragedy and bringing reflection to emotion.

Sun 23 Mar Waterman's 3:00

An adaptation of Katherine Mansfield's "Daughters of the Late Colonel", the story revolves around two middle-aged spinster sisters trying to cope with the void left after the death of a controlling father. It is a story of their experience with 'freedom' and an exploration of their incapacity to handle it.

Sun 23 Mar 8:40 NFT2; Sun 13 Apr Phoenix Arts; Mon 14 Apr Phoenix Arts

As the dying embers of her mother's funeral pyre cinder, Leela (Dimple Kapadia) questions her life, setting in motion events that will change her life irrevocably. Leaving her 'perfect life' behind, she arrives at an American university in a swirl of pastel saris as a visiting professor, wearing her Indian identity on her sleeve.

Kris (born Krishna) (Amol Mhatre), a young Indian-American is wholly assimilated into Western culture, listening to hip-hop. Kris finds comfort in his friendship with Leela, and they develop a strong bond. Leela opens Kris to a world beyond black and white and, in turn Kris pushes Leela to crystallise the greys in her own life. She begins to scrutinise afresh her crumbling marriage to world-renowned poet, Nashaad (Vinod Khanna) whose philandering ways have slowly worn down her unconditional, unquestioning love for him. Things come to a head when Nashaad, realising Leela's growing disenchantment, tries to reconnect with her. He fights to keep his love - unleashing a storm that turns everyone's lives upside down. As they say, nothing touched by fire remains the same.

Sun 6 Apr Watermans; Sat 12 Apr Phoenix Arts

Life in Chunni's (Shweta Prasad) village is all peace and quiet, and great fun. She fools the village with her impersonation of her identical twin, Munni; her best friend Mugale Azam(Alap) does her homework, and she has all the opportunity to vex her schoolteacher, the village butcher and her father. There is one small problem, though.

In a haunted mansion in the village lives a legendary evil witch called Makdee (Shabana Azmi). Chunni's cheeky antics land Munni into the clutches of Makdee who turns hers into a chicken. Will Chunni get the wicked witch to return her sister? Or will she fall prey to the evil and cunning of Makdee?