Ash is looking to go on a nice date, meet the right girl, but nobody believes he is Indian!  Three Dates is a film about a man of Indian origin who lives in New York and has trouble making people around him believe that he is Indian. Why would they? He is not Mama’s boy, Tandoori chicken and spicy Indian food doesn’t go down very well with him and he is not into yoga. He rolls his eyes when his date mentions the aligning of chakras. He could pass for a Mexican or an Italian – anything but Indian. A light-hearted short film, Three Dates explores important questions about one’s identity.

The film was recently screened at the New York Indian Film Festival. Directed by Shubhra Prakash, an actor and singer of Indian origin from San Francisco bay area, Shubhra has been living in NYC since June 2012. She has been on stage in Columbia University’s Vagina Monologues, among other successful appearances.  She spoke to Women Talk Online blogger Roma Rajpal.

Roma Rajpal: What inspired you to make the film?

Shubhra Prakash: A friend shared his experiences with how he was constantly mistaken to be of several ethnicities other than his own. It would often leave him confused when it happened, as far as dating was concerned. I was curious about it, so I made this short and it seems like people identify with it. A huge part of the film was based on real life incidents.

Is the issue of ethnicity close to your heart, given your roots?

It becomes an important context since I am in a place with people from different ethnic backgrounds. But the film clearly shows that people of the same ethnicity fail to identify with the person.

Would you say the issue of ethnicity is a serious concern in a multicultural hub like New York?

I think that’s a bigger question, so in the context of this short, I believe that having so many ethnicities around oneself can definitely lead to some ludicrous circumstances, which get you laughing or bewilder you. These things definitely happen in New York and metros in general.

What is your next project about? How do you plan to film it?

I’m exploring the soap operas but definitely not making one. I am not yet sure. It is very early to answer that as I am waiting for something to form that I can work with.

Interview: Roma Rajpal

Editor: Manasi Gopalakrishnan