American Chai

Average customer rating:

"So by age 10, I had become the world's first Indian, Jewish, Native American Negro."

This movie deepend my interest and love with Indian Culture.

FRAUD!!! trailer gave a different meaning

BOLLYWOOD...GEN X STYLE...

Great coming of age movie

American Chai

Manufacturer: Silver Nitrate Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video
DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video
General | Foreign & International | Stores | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ABCD ABCD

American Desi

Ball & Chain

Dude, Where's the Party?

Masala Masala

ASIN: B0002375R6

Product Description

Reminiscent of recent favorite BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM, American Chai is a funny, feel-good, coming-of-age story about an Indian-American college boy who deceives his traditional parents in order to follow his rock & roll dreams. They think he's pre-med, but he's really a music major...WINNER of the AUDIENCE AWARD at both the Slamdance and Gen Art Film Festivals, AMERICAN CHAI is a charming film that celebrates the virtues of the American melting pot with truth, respect and lots of humor

Customer Reviews:

"So by age 10, I had become the world's first Indian, Jewish, Native American Negro.".......2007-06-05

AMERICAN CHAI is one of those sweet, little films made on a shoe string budget and which typically co-stars the filmmaker's families and friends. To go by the sheer volume of personal shout-outs given in the film commentary by Director Anurag Metha and leads Aalok Mehta and Sheetal Sheth, you'd think professional actor Josh Ackerman was the only one that actually got paid. The friends and families, of course, are guilted into doing it and then rewarded by being invited to the post filming cookout. Or it seems that way, anyway. It sometimes pays off, though, having your pals and parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins on the set and rooting you on. This independent film exudes an air of wide eyed exuberance and off-the-cuff charm. I liked it very much.

Sureel (Aalok Mehta) was born and raised in New Jersey, in the U.S. of A. He is of Indian origin, his stern and traditional father (Paresh Rawal) having come here to seek a better life. Like others of ethnic-American background, Sureel has had to struggle to fit in. He's had to balance the traditions and restrictions of his native culture against the contemporary American ways and the inherent liberties which go with residing in America. From when he was very young, his religion and ethnicity have prompted questions from his peers ("I'm an Indian." "What tribe are you from?").

His father wants him in the medical field, although Sureel's passion strictly lies in music. Sureel goes off to college and opts to be a music major. However, his parents still believe he's studying to be a doctor. So, for years now, Sureel's gotten away with deceiving his parents. He's in a band, writing his own songs, partying, and even dating a white girl. But then he meets Maya, a beautiful Indian girl...

This was a lot of fun, watching AMERICAN CHAI. It's similar to BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM, if not as good as. The cast and crew, mostly Indian, have obviously pooled their past experiences and put them in the film. This film is replete with what you'd expect: generation gap run-ins between the traditional parent and the rebellious offspring and, of course, the cultural and lifestyle clashes. There's even a heartbreaking subplot involving a Caucasian guy going out with an Indian girl. The stereotypes are certainly rolled out with tongue-in-cheek zeal. But AMERICAN CHAI, more than anything else, is a warm coming of age story, and heightened by a sweet romance between Sureel and Maya. Additionally, this film made me laugh with its spoofing of Bollywood musical numbers and its explanation of "the turnaway."

The actors are enthusiastic and pretty good. Aalok Mehta is the director's brother, but any thoughts of nepotism are discarded once you realize how ideal for the part Aalok is. Not to mention, the dude plays his own guitar and sitar and actually sings (the cool "Breathe" and "In Between Blue"). And not too shabbily, either. Sheetal Sheth, who plays the winsome Maya, is camera friendly and is very engaging, although I didn't care too much for her dance performance (sorry, but I've seen Aishwarya Rai). I wouldn't describe the synergy between Aalok and Sheetal as "sizzling heat"; it's more of an amicable relationship, fueled by genuine mutual respect, which then could potentially lead to something long lasting. Paresh Rawal deserves credit for jumping into the role of Sureel's dad cold, without much rehearsing, and then nailing it. The other standout is the hilarious Aasif Mandvi, who plays the coarse and misogynistic Engineering Sam. Sam provides some of the biggest laughs on screen and spouts my favorite line in the movie: "The country that brought you the Kama Sutra now brings you no kissing in their movies." If you've seen Bollywood cinema before, then you know what he's talking about.

The special features are notable for the droll film commentary done by Director Anurag Mehta and actors Aalok Mehta and Sheetal Sheth. It's definitely worth listening to them breezily chit chat and have fun with each other. There are even amusing insights into growing up Indian in America. There's also Aakol's music video "Breath" and the theatrical trailer.

Of course, there's a band competition to close things off. Does Sureel win? Or will it be his former band Fathead (a real band, by the way, although since broken up). Will his father come around? Will Sureel follow his dream or bow to tradition? Hell, does he even get the girl in the end? Finding out could be one of the more fun hour and a half you'll have.

This movie deepend my interest and love with Indian Culture........2006-01-13

This was a wonderfully funny, dramatic take on Indian Americans, also known as DESI's (see ABCD Sheetal Shal). It has great music, and actual plot, which was actually more entertaining, and thought provoking than I originally thought it would be. Introduced me to Aalok Mehta (great musician.. so-so learning developing actor) and FatHead (yeah that is a real band). Thoroughly enjoyable great date movie.
****************************************
Most def not to cheesy.

FRAUD!!! trailer gave a different meaning.......2005-08-10

First, let me say that the reviews given for this movie here in Amazon sucks, if these are the reviews given to such a film I can imagine what these guys choice of movies are going to be.

Secondly, I say the movie because I thought it was going to be a comedy as indicated in the trailer, but believe it or not most of the good scenes in the movies (which I had already seen in the trailer) appear in the first 13-15 minutes of the movie after that the movie sucks.....

Well after the 15 minutes of the movie an Indian Dance appear (one of those self glorifying Indian ego to the world culture & heritage, whatever that means) and the dance sucks, I have seen much better Indian dancers.

Then the movie goes on and on without any direction (though after 20min of the movie you already know how the movie's going to end, even then the film keeps on dragging).

There will be another speech given by the lead about how great the Indians are in US and how great they can get GREAT!!!!!
And yes there is in the movie a white character to make the move cool!! I suppose but what a wimp!! his character is, his characterisation is so predicatable you will know what I mean if you have watched other Indian movies with white characters, they give them such sucking characters not to mention really bad actors (Martin Henderson was the best & coolest actor the could get for the movie Bride & Prejudice, what more can i say).

I can't even overstate that the acting sucks from all aspect except when the Dad (Paresh Rawal) comes into the scene when the acting gets more believable.

Some may consider this a comedy, but if you consider this sort of movies as a comedy something is really wrong with your sense of humour.
Well, those who find this funny will be the Indians and the fact is those scenes are not actually comedy scenes but seemed funny to the Indians only because it happened to themselves or someone close to them and these analogies have rarely been put into a big screen. It's like when your mom or dad appears on TV we get excited, only this time it's pathetic.

Finally, I wasted 2hrs of my life on this movie and I am even wasting it more by writing this review more the future wannabe viewers.
But if you are one of those Indians wanting to watch a Hollywood version of Bollywood with NRI's (sucking in acting) just for self-glorification to convince themselves how great Indians are, this is for you Cheers!!! ;-)

BOLLYWOOD...GEN X STYLE..........2005-03-20

This is a charming film in which cultural values clash within a family. Sureel is a young Indian-American senior in college, majoring in music. The only problem is that his very traditional parents, who are immigrants from India, believe that he is actually enrolled in a pre-med course of study, as they have decided that Sureel is to become a doctor. Sureel, a budding musician who is fearful of disappointing his parents, does not share their passion for such a career.

Unbeknownst to his parents, Sureel also plays guitar for a rock band, an outlet of which his parents are unaware, as Sureel keeps them blissfully ignorant. He maintains his deception through a series of maneuvers aimed at keeping his parents in the dark about his interests, which are decidedly not related to the medical field. Unfortunately, his efforts at leading a double life cause him to miss or be late for too many practice sessions with his band, and the band unceremoniously gives him the boot on the cusp of their hitting the big time. To his dismay, Sureel also loses his American girlfriend, as she was nothing more than a groupie.

Through his Indian-American friend, known as Engineering Sam, Sureel meets a beautiful Indian-American girl named Maya, who is also musically inclined, as she is interested in the art of traditional Indian dancing. When his parents discover his love interest, they are overjoyed and move to arrange his marriage to Maya in the traditional way, much to Sureel's consternation. Through his relationship with Maya, however, his own appreciation of Indian culture rises, and he finds himself melding Indian with American influences in his music, switching from guitar to sitar. Sureel ends up creating an interesting cultural blend of music, infusing American rock with traditional Indian inspired strains.

This film, with its excellent cast and storyline, charms the viewer as it alternates between American and Indian cultures and values, between the younger generation and the older, and between the traditional and the non-traditional. Somehow, the film ends up reconciling all these divergent interests. Those who enjoy Bollywood style films or films with Anglo-Indian themes will enjoy this charming film.

Great coming of age movie.......2004-09-29

Very entertaining coming of age movie that really captures the experience of the first generation Indian American... we loved it!

Average customer rating:

Extraordinary!

WHITE FACE

Manufacturer: CustomFlix
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( W ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000MTEABO
Release Date: 2007-01-22

Customer Reviews:

Extraordinary!.......2007-09-12

This short film powerfully portays both the brazen and subtle prejudices that we accept as part of daily life. People are so easily categorized and stereyped by careless langauge and learned attitudes! Through the images and scenarios presented using Clowns, we are cautioned about the insidiousnous of prejudice and the danger of complacency. "White Face" is straightforward enough to share with elementary school children, yet sophisticated enough to provoke discussion at the university level. Congratulations to Brian McDonald for creating a great film which teaches, inspires and perhaps, helps to make the world a better place.

Average customer rating:

My Friend Paul

Manufacturer: CustomFlix
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Documentary | Genres | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000H6SVGM
Release Date: 2006-07-24

DVD:

DVD

DVD