Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla
Encyclopedia
Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla born in Mombasa
, Kenya
, is a Los Angeles
-based writer. He is most famous for his novel Ode to Lata published in 2002, that was adapted to a film in 2008 by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri under the title The Ode
. Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla wrote the screenplay to The Ode and was one of its producers. He has also published the novel The Two Krishnas in 2011.
An excerpt from Ode to Lata was featured in the award-winning anthology Contours of the Heart: South Asians Map North America (Rutgers), which went on to win the 18th Annual American Book Award
. The Los Angeles Times Book Review hailed Dhalla's debut as "an achievement" (Sunday, March 24, 2002) and Christopher Rice
called it "a rare, great novel" (book jacket). Ode to Lata created milestones as the first South Asian gay novel ever to be reviewed by The Los Angeles Times and to be excerpted by Genre Magazine. It was also the first account of the South Asian gay experience from an author from the African continent. The cultural and academic impact of Dhalla's debut novel was further recognized when it was presented at the Between The Lines Festival at MIT (Boston) in 2004, and added to college syllabuses around the country like California State University.
Ode to Lata was adapted for a motion picture, The Ode
starring Sachin Bhatt
, Wilson Cruz
, and Sakina Jaffrey
. Dhalla wrote, co-directed and produced the film. The Ode premiered at the Outfest
Film Festival on July 17, 2008 to a sold-out audience. It was called "a beautiful portrait of the American experience for many first and second-generation Indian-Americans" (CineQueer, July 18, 2008) and a film with performances that are "memorable" and filled with "cinematic intensity" (Planet Homo, July 19, 2008). The UCLA Asia Institute praised it as a film that inspired "after-film contemplation" and boasting performances that are "noteworthy" (Asia Pacific Arts, August 8, 2008).
Dhalla's follow-up novel, The Two Krishnas (Magnus Books, September 2011) draws from romantic Sufi poetry and archetypal Hindu mythology. It paints a picture of infidelity and political upheaval across three continents; exploring how, with a new world come new freedoms, and with them, the choices that could change everything we know about those we thought we knew—including ourselves.
Some of Dhalla's influences are Dorothy Parker
, Andrew Holleran
, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
and the poetry of Rumi.
In January 2011, Dhalla wrote, directed and produced the film Embrace starring Rebecca Hazlewood
, Ajay Mehta and Randy Ryan. Embrace is the first dramatization of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks on record.
Novels
Short stories
Films (screenwriter)
Films (producer)
Related
Mombasa
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, is a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based writer. He is most famous for his novel Ode to Lata published in 2002, that was adapted to a film in 2008 by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri under the title The Ode
The Ode
The Odd is a 2008 film directed by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri and starring Sachin Bhatt, Wilson Cruz and Sakina Jaffrey. The film is an adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel, Ode to Lata by Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla...
. Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla wrote the screenplay to The Ode and was one of its producers. He has also published the novel The Two Krishnas in 2011.
Career
At 13 years old, the aspiring young novelist published his first article on infertility in a national magazine VIVA. Since then he's written for various publications including Instinct, Genre, Angeleno, Detour and Details and is the Editor of the upscale lifestyle E-zine IndulgeMagazine.comAn excerpt from Ode to Lata was featured in the award-winning anthology Contours of the Heart: South Asians Map North America (Rutgers), which went on to win the 18th Annual American Book Award
American Book Award
The American Book Award was established in 1978 by the Before Columbus Foundation. It seeks to recognize outstanding literary achievement by contemporary American authors, without restriction to race, sex, ethnic background, or genre...
. The Los Angeles Times Book Review hailed Dhalla's debut as "an achievement" (Sunday, March 24, 2002) and Christopher Rice
Christopher Rice
Christopher Travis Rice is an American author. Rice has written five best-selling novels: A Density of Souls, The Snow Garden, Light Before Day, Blind Fall, and his latest book, The Moonlit Earth, which was published in April 2010 by Scribner.-Biography:Christopher Rice comes from a family of...
called it "a rare, great novel" (book jacket). Ode to Lata created milestones as the first South Asian gay novel ever to be reviewed by The Los Angeles Times and to be excerpted by Genre Magazine. It was also the first account of the South Asian gay experience from an author from the African continent. The cultural and academic impact of Dhalla's debut novel was further recognized when it was presented at the Between The Lines Festival at MIT (Boston) in 2004, and added to college syllabuses around the country like California State University.
Ode to Lata was adapted for a motion picture, The Ode
The Ode
The Odd is a 2008 film directed by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri and starring Sachin Bhatt, Wilson Cruz and Sakina Jaffrey. The film is an adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel, Ode to Lata by Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla...
starring Sachin Bhatt
Sachin Bhatt
Sachin Bhatt is an American theatre, film and television actor of Indian origin.Bhatt is best known for his lead role as Ali in the 2008 film The Ode directed by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri...
, Wilson Cruz
Wilson Cruz
Wilson Cruz is an American actor, known for playing Rickie Vasquez on My So-Called Life and a recurring character on Noah's Arc...
, and Sakina Jaffrey
Sakina Jaffrey
Sakina Jaffrey is an Indian American actress.Jaffrey was born in Manhattan, New York, the youngest daughter of Madhur Jaffrey and Saeed Jaffrey. She graduated from Vassar College in 1984. Jaffrey appeared with her father in the film Masala and with her mother in The Perfect Murder...
. Dhalla wrote, co-directed and produced the film. The Ode premiered at the Outfest
Outfest
Outfest is an LGBT-oriented film showcase and festival in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1982 as the "Gay and Lesbian Media Festival and Conference", the name was changed to Outfest in 1994.-Programs:...
Film Festival on July 17, 2008 to a sold-out audience. It was called "a beautiful portrait of the American experience for many first and second-generation Indian-Americans" (CineQueer, July 18, 2008) and a film with performances that are "memorable" and filled with "cinematic intensity" (Planet Homo, July 19, 2008). The UCLA Asia Institute praised it as a film that inspired "after-film contemplation" and boasting performances that are "noteworthy" (Asia Pacific Arts, August 8, 2008).
Dhalla's follow-up novel, The Two Krishnas (Magnus Books, September 2011) draws from romantic Sufi poetry and archetypal Hindu mythology. It paints a picture of infidelity and political upheaval across three continents; exploring how, with a new world come new freedoms, and with them, the choices that could change everything we know about those we thought we knew—including ourselves.
Some of Dhalla's influences are Dorothy Parker
Dorothy Parker
Dorothy Parker was an American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist, best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th century urban foibles....
, Andrew Holleran
Andrew Holleran
Andrew Holleran is the pseudonym of Eric Garber , a novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is a prominent novelist of post-Stonewall gay literature. He was a member of The Violet Quill, a gay writer's group that met briefly from 1980-81. The Violet Quill included other prolific gay writers...
, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, CBE is a Booker prize-winning novelist, short story writer, and two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter. She is perhaps best known for her long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions, made up of director James Ivory and the late producer Ismail Merchant...
and the poetry of Rumi.
In January 2011, Dhalla wrote, directed and produced the film Embrace starring Rebecca Hazlewood
Rebecca Hazlewood
Rebecca Hazlewood is an English actress of mixed English and Indian descent. Hazlewood was born in Wales and grew up in Kingswinford, England and studied English Literature at Bretton Hall...
, Ajay Mehta and Randy Ryan. Embrace is the first dramatization of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks on record.
In popular culture
- East Indian in heritage and a passionate activist, Dhalla co-founded the South Asian program for the Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team (APAIT) which provides prevention, health and social services, community leadership and advocacy to over 10,000 individuals in Southern California. He was also one of the founding members of SATRANG, a support group for LGBT South Asians in Los Angeles.
- In June 2007, Dhalla was listed as one of the Top 21 Tastemakers and “Most Important Movers and Shakers” in America by Genre Magazine.
- In August 2007, Dhalla was listed as one of the "Top 25 People Who Make Us Melt - Angelenos Who Redefine What's Hot" by Frontiers Magazine.
- In March 2008, Dhalla was included in Anokhi Magazine's "Sexy & Successful 2008" roster.
- Dhalla joined the prestigious Humanitas PrizeHumanitas PrizeThe Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing intended to promote human dignity, meaning, and freedom. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser — also the founder of Paulist Productions — but is generally not seen as specifically directed toward religious...
organization in 2009 as a Reader for excellence in TV and Film scripts for the 35th Humanitas Prize. On August 29, 2009 Dhalla was showcased at the Lincoln Center for the Performing ArtsLincoln Center for the Performing ArtsLincoln Center for the Performing Arts is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of New York City's Upper West Side. Reynold Levy has been its president since 2002.-History and facilities:...
in New York with the headlining event, An Evening with Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla where he had the opportunity to map the journey of his semi-autobiographical novel, Ode to Lata to screen and celebrate his body of work. The event was thrown by Engendered, an arts and human rights organization aimed at creating awareness around gender and sexuality.
Works
- Ode to Lata - Novel (Really Great Books, 2002)
- The Two Krishnas - Novel (Magnus Books, 9/11) Published as The Exiles (HarperCollins India 2011)
Short stories
- A - short story, Love, West Hollywood anthology (2008)
Films (screenwriter)
- The OdeThe OdeThe Odd is a 2008 film directed by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri and starring Sachin Bhatt, Wilson Cruz and Sakina Jaffrey. The film is an adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel, Ode to Lata by Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla...
- Screenplay (2007) - Embrace - Writer/Director/Producer (Post-Production)
- Abandon - Original Screenplay (Development)
Films (producer)
- The OdeThe OdeThe Odd is a 2008 film directed by Nilanjan Neil Lahiri and starring Sachin Bhatt, Wilson Cruz and Sakina Jaffrey. The film is an adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel, Ode to Lata by Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla...
- Associate Producer (2007)
External links
- Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla Official website
- Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla Facebook
- Embrace on Facebook
- The Ode at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
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