The Culture Section                                                                                     

Embassy of India

Beijing                                                                                                           Sept 3, 2009

 

 

Dear Friend,

Events : Sept 2009

 

      On behalf of the Embassy of India, please accept our greetings and best wishes of the season!  The following are our forthcoming activities in Sept 2009 :

 

I.   Documentary : “A Day in the Life of India” [Sept 14 – Monday, 1730 hrs]

 

This 30 minute documentary (in English) brings out the story of a day in the life of India especially the role of religion and festivals. The brief documentary attempts to capture the typical happenings in the life of a common Indian.

 

II.   Film show : “Paheli” (The Riddle) [Sept 17 – Thursday, 1630 hrs]

 

This 2 hour- 15 minute movie (with English subtitles) is a 2005 Bollywood romance drama based on a western Indian folktale. It features India’s well-known film stars. The summarized story is attached below.

 

III.   Hindi Day   [Sept  21 –, 1600 hrs ]

 

This is an event to celebrate Hindi, India’s most popular and one of the important official languages. The one-hour programme (in Hindi) will feature many of our Chinese friends (including China Radio International – Hindi Dept. and Peking University) who will present their contributions on the occasion.

 

IV.   Documentary : “This is Urdu ” [Sept 24 – Thursday, 1730 hrs]

 

This one-and-half-hour documentary (in English) describes the story and rich history of the Urdu language. Urdu is one of India’s 22 official languages and is known for its poetic expressions and idioms. Urdu evolved during the 16 th century in North India and used widely today in the Indian sub-continent.

 

Note : The movies are being shown on a non-commercial basis and with the sole purpose of promotion of Indian culture & arts

 

      You and your friends are cordially invited to the above events. We would request for your confirmation to be sent to Ms. Sarah (Ph: 65683218, Fax: 65681918) or culturesection@gmail.com. Our events are only for promotion of Indian culture and there is no charge for the events. Looking forward to seeing you,

 

                        With warm regards,

 

Culture Section

Embassy of India

Beijing

 

Paheli (The Riddle)

Paheli is a love story based on a classic Rajasthani (West Indian) folktale. In true fairytale style it tells the story of Lachchi (Rani Mukherji), an innocent girl married to Kishan, whose only real interest is money. On the night of their marriage, he leaves to pursue his interests. However a ghost (Shah Rukh Khan) has fallen in love with Lachchi and when Kishan goes away he takes on his appearance and wins everyone’s hearts. When the real Kishan finally returns five years later, confusion understandably abounds until finally a wise old shepherd (Amitabh Bachchan) devises the three tests to resolve the “Paheli” (Riddle) that has baffled everyone.

 

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