When the American space shuttle Discovery STS-119 blasted off last month, it had some interesting viewing on board – Santosh Sivan’s Before the Rains. That particular DVD was selected by NASA astronaut Steve Swanson, and Sivan has no idea why! In fact the director admits that so great was his disbelief that the crew aboard the shuttle snapped a picture of the DVD and sent it across as evidence.
Before the Rains was adapted from the 2001 Israeli film Asphalt Zahov, and premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival last year. News is that Swanson was floored by Nandita Das’ performance as village woman Sajani, who carries on a secret affair with her British boss Henry Moores (Linus Roache).
Sivan thinks that maybe the film’s artistic nature might have captivated the astronaut. After all, it’s not your average run-of-the-mill Bollywood entertainer with slapstick comedy and item numbers. Sivan is looking forward to releasing the movie in India in May despite the producers vs. Multiplex strike and is quiet prepared for a limited audience.
