At the inaugural commencement of NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia, student speaker Ashish Ghadiali ’10 (MFA, Kanbar, Film) posed the question “If you are a rebel then why aren’t you here (at Tisch School of the Arts Asia)?” Since then, Ash has been breaking boundaries and venturing into new markets in India.
Ash’s feature script has been short-listed for the upcoming Sundance Institute Screenwriters Lab, first to commence ever in India. Developed in collaboration with Mumbai Mantra and Sundance Institute, the Sundance Institute Screenwriters Lab is a non-profit aspiration of Mumbai Mantra Media Limited to encourage original storytelling by offering a platform to storytellers to gain from the experience of Sundance Institute and Creative Advisors in international cinema who shall help in honing their scripts further. The lab fulfills the company’s desire to help Indian storytellers achieve their fullest potential and assist them to develop stories that resonate to a larger audience in India and internationally.
Ashish has worked as a screenwriter with prominent Indian film director and producer, Shekhar Kapur. Shekhar is best know for his works Bandit Queen, Elizabeth and Elizabeth: The Golden Age which garnered several Academy Award nominations. Ash also had the chance also to work with Bollywood producer, Mukesh Bhatt, co-owner of Vishesh Films.
Ash was also selected together with Nathanel Carton ’11 (MFA, Kanbar, Film) for a screenwriter’s lab organized by the Apulia Film Commission in Southern Italy.
He will also be traveling to Palestine to reconnect with the The Freedom Theater, a theater and cultural centre in Jenin Refugee Camp where he once worked before coming to Tisch Asia.
The Freedom Theatre develops the only professional venue for theatre and multimedia in the north of the West Bank in Occupied Palestine. Since it opened its doors in 2006, the organization continues to grow, develop and expand, enabling the young generation in the area to develop new and important skills which allows them to build a better future for themselves and for their society. Director of Arna’s Children, Juliano Mer Khamis is the General Director of The Freedom Theatre.
We would like to wish Ash all the very best.
