Courageous and emotionally powerful, Fire follows Sita (Nandita Das) and Radha (Shabana Azmi), two women living in New Delhi who are disappointed with their arranged marriages. While Sita is trapped in a relationship with her cruel and unfaithful husband, Jatin (Jaaved Jaafei), Radha is married to his brother, Ashok (Kulbhushan Kharbanda), a religious zealot who believes in suppressing desire. Lonely and lacking in love and passion, the two women begin to seek solace and friendship in each other, only to discover a passionate romantic love that must be kept secret.

When it was released in the late 1990s, Fire’s incendiary subject matter led to protests and government interventions in India. Years later, the internationally acclaimed film is as seductive and moving as ever.

The film won seven awards at film festivals around the world, including "Most Popular Canadian Film" at the Vancouver International Film Festival.
 

Director

Deepa Mehta

A member of the Order of Canada, Mehta is an award-winning filmmaker who gained acclaim for her trilogy, Fire, Earth and the Oscar-nominated Water. Her adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children was nominated for eight CSAs. She has also directed Bollywood/Hollywood, Beeba Boys, Anatomy of Violence, and many other films. Her film Funny Boy won multiple awards, including the CSAs for best direction and best screenplay. Her television credits include episodes of Leila, Yellowjackets, and Little America.

Writer

Deepa Mehta

Cast

Shabana Azmi, Nandita Das, Karishma Jhalani

Producers

Bobby Bedi, David Hamilton, Deepa Mehta

Genres

Drama, Romance

Interests

Asian Filmmaker, Female Filmmaker, Global Experiences, LGBTQ2S+, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

English