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Media News
Los Angeles, August 09
The 60th anniversary of India's independence is being celebrated with a dazzling splash, as Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Bipasha Basu, Mani Ratnam, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Oscar winner Ben Kingsley, spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and many other top artists and personalities from India will descend on Los Angeles from Aug. 10 for "India Splendor," a colorful, star-studded event designed to present the best of India's arts, culture and spirituality to American audiences.
MGLOBAL TRUST, in association with UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television, International Creative Management and ArtWallah, is hosting the India Splendor event. India-born tennis star and veteran Hollywood film producer Ashok Amritraj is the cultural ambassador for India Splendor.
India Splendor will unfold over six days in Los Angeles, starting on August 10, 2007 and culminating with a live performance finale on August 15, 2007. It will showcase the finest in contemporary Indian cinema, arts, fashion, dance, music and spirituality.
Says Dr. Modi, “India Splendor will bring out the understanding of a vibrant new India. It will be the first in a series of collaborative endeavors between global creative communities and the beginning of a dynamic Indo-US relationship at the holistic level.”
India Splendor will be the first consequential effort of its kind, undertaken by two foremost Indian and American institutions working in partnership, to bring together film industry leaders and key decision-makers from Mumbai and Los Angeles. Our objective is to catalyze longer-term creative and business connections between these two international capitals of cinema that together produce more popular entertainment than the rest of the world combined.”
As part of his commitment to encourage and promote culture, Dr. B.K Modi announced that his company, MCORP Global has donated one million dollars to the art non-profit, ArtWallah, which will be earmarked for art education at Los Angeles public schools.
“As a USC alum, I strongly feel that Los Angeles is the center of innovation, communication and entertainment. Art is the best medium to achieve world peace. I was distressed to learn about Art Education budget cuts at Los Angeles public schools. For this reason, and on the occasion of India Splendor and the 60th Anniversary of Indian Independence, I am donating to create art programming for children at the elementary school level in public schools in the Greater Los Angeles Area. My Los Angeles based foundation, ArtWallah, will administer the programs”
"Our vision has been to bring all the facets of Indian culture, including our booming film industry, to the U.S. in jointly celebrating this momentous mark in history," adds Bhupendra Kumar Modi, chairman of Indian conglomerate MCorp Global.
India Splendor will feature Indian filmmakers like Mani Ratnam, Vidhu Vinod Chopra presenting the latest Indian feature films. There will also be a special tribute to Indian film legend, Raj Kapoor.
India Splendor does not only concentrate on film but also offers highlights which include a Spiritual Discourse by H H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Founder of the Art of Living, who has a global following of more than 20 million. There will also be a fashion show extravaganza by acclaimed Indian Designer, Suneet Verma.
On 15th August at the gala celebration of India¹s 60th Anniversary of Independence, prominent Indians who have carved a name for themselves in their respective fields, will be the recipients of the ‘India Splendor Awards' in the midst of a high voltage art, dance, music and performance extravaganza being produced by WizCraft. .
India Splendor will also have a special invitee guest list of the Hollywood community, drawing a hearty crowd of industry professionals including Hollywood celebrities, top studio executives, talent agency heads, exhibitors, distributors, film financiers and die-hard movie buffs for whom the Art and Cinema of the Indian Subcontinent has long exuded a particular emotion.
India Splendor is supported by several nonprofits such as ArtWallah, Habiart Foundation, Sahara Foundation, TiE Southern California, Maybach Family Foundation and the Art of Living Foundation.
Festival affiliates include Yashraj Films, the National Film Development Corporation of India, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Eros Entertainment, Vidhu Vinod Chopra Productions, UTV, Madras Talkies, Kaleidoscope and WizCraft. Event sponsors include Spice Telecom, Wipro and Zeti India.
For further information, please contact:
Natasha Amir / Jinal Rathod / Pracheta Gupta
LIN Opinion – The Lintas PR Division
9820520818 / 9820446499 / 9820094601