Water
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Deepa Mehta
Seema Biswas
John Abraham
Lisa Ray
Rishma Malik
Vinay Pathak
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
In 1938 India an 8 year old girl, who barely even remembers her wedding and has little comprehension of her marriage, has just been widowed. Required by ancient Hindu laws to now leave society, she is brought to a dilapidated widow house or ashram where, according to custom, her hair will be shorn, her clothes exchanged for white robes and the rest of her life, until her death, will be spent in renunciation. But the feisty, precocious, disbelieving Chuyia soon turns the house upside down with her rebellious spark. She begins to have a profound effect on the other women who live there, in particular the devout Shakuntala and the beautiful Kalyani, who has been forced into prostitution by the domineering head widow, Madhumati. It is Chuyia who leads Kalyani to meet the alluring law student and Gandhi nationalist Narayan, with whom Kalyani falls in love, despite the taboos. What happens next--an attempt at escape fueled by passion and bravery--will change Chuyia forever and bring both tragedy and an unexpected ray of hope to the widow house.
Director
Deepa Mehta
Cast
Seema Biswas
John Abraham
Lisa Ray
Rishma Malik
Vinay Pathak
Raghuvir Yadav
Waheeda Rehman
Kulbhushan Kharbanda
Vidula Javalgekar
Gerson Da Cunha
Ronica Sajnani
Meera Biswas
Buddhi Wickrama
Rinsly Weerarathne
Iranganie Serasinghe
Hemantha Gamage
Sanoja Bibile
Dolly Ahluwalia
Daya Alwis
Delon Weerasinghe
Francisca Mudannayake
Mulchand Dedhia
Isuru Navodya
Niroshan Wijesinghe
Mohan Jhangiani
Vasanth Nath
Kumari Dissanayake
Seelawathie Silva
Fowzie Inaya
A A Premawathhie
T Mageswari
S Pooneswary
M Santhanammary
S Thevanamma
Siththi Ummah
Mala Meenachchi
Nazeema Farlya
H Pathiranage
S Parameshawari
Rajeshwari Sachdev
Zul Vilani
Crew
Rebecca Adams
M.z. Ahmeer
Begum Akhtar
Sardar Akhtar
Raqueeb Alam
Raqueeb Alam
Lylie Almeida
R.r.b. Alphonso
Tyrol Anderson
Raj Anthony
Ranjith Anuradha
Michael Appuhamy
Sylvain Arsenault
Saddika Asanka
Lucky Athauda
Suraj Azmath
Steve Bain
Alan Bak
Tom Bak
Jeff Baker
Avani Batra
W. Michael Beard
Ulhas Bhapat
Aparna Bhargava
Surjo Bhattacharya
Jack Boem
Roberta Bratti
Peter Breiner
Gary Brown
Mark Burton
Christian Carruthers
Elius Caruso
Pat Cassin
Shreela Chakrabarity
Ajay Chakroborty
W Chamitha Perera
J.m.d. Chamitha Wasantha
Kate Chantler
K D Charles
Rakesh Chaurasia
K.d. Jagath Christy
Drake Conrad
Uma Da Cunha
Gamini Dabare
Nihal Dabare
Mychael Danna
Bob Davidson
Bryan Day
Aruni De Silva
Mulchand Dedhia
Ainsley Desilva
A W Dharmadasa
Gopi Dharmaratnam
Lalith Dharmawardena
K.a. Dharshana
Lokesh Dhawan
Hemasiri Dias
S.n.s. Samanda Dias
Lal Dissanayake
Lal Dissanayake
Nicholas Dodd
Pearl Dunuwila
Lee Englemann
Rohan Fernando
Ronnie Fonseka
W Manjula Fonseka
W. L.g. Fonseka
Gina Fowler
Janice Fowlie
Vic Fraser
Hermantha Gamage
Selva Ganesh
Jason Giberson
Mark Gingras
Jamie Gould
D Dylan Gray
Elizabeth Gruszka
Krishantha Gunasekera
Krishantha Gunasekera
Gina Gyles
Lon J. Hall
Rumana Hamied
Rumana Hamied
David Hamilton
Rick Hannigan
Vivian Hanwell
Lal Harindranath
Jayan Hasitha
Felix Heeb
Piyal Illeyaperuma
Elif Isikozlu
S Ivakumar
Anna Ivanova
Sunil Jayakody
Sumant Jayakrishnan
Sarath Jayasundara
Melanie Jeffrey
Winnifred Jong
Kingsley Joseph
K D Justin
Darshana Sampath Karunaratne
P.u. Karunaratne
Errol Kelly
Chandimal Kodituwakku
Sunil Kodituwakku
James Koole
Michael Kowalski
Wojceich Kufner
Surendra Kumar
Chaminda Saman Kumara
John Laing
Chander Lal
Hira Lal
Lionel Liyanage
John Loranger
Anthony Lordon
Diana Madureira
Allan Magled
A Magulpokuna
Gamini Mallawarachchi
Nihal Mallawarachchi
Nuwan Manju
P K Manjula
Douglas Mankoff
Paul Mantler
Ivan Martin
Tom Mayclim
Matthew Mckenzie
Chaminda Meemanage
Deepa Mehta
Deepa Mehta
Dilip Mehta
Dilip Mehta
G.t.r. Mendis
J W Mendis
Victor Meniksagara
P D Michael
Aditya Modi
Siddique Mohamed
Mike Mombourquette
Colin Monie
Art Montreuil
Vikramaditya Motwane
Srinivas Murthy
M Nandadiri
Damith Nandalal
A Nandasiri
Vasanth Nath
Senaka Navaratne
Senaka Navaratne
Naveen
Champika Nilantha
Jagath Nissanka
Reagan Noble
Giles Nuttgens
Ricardo Olivero
K.k.n. Palitha
Michael Paterson
Karunadasa Pathiratne
Vujitha Peiris
Anura Perera
Asoka Perera
Asoka Perera
Moly Perera
Rienzie Perera
Salinda Perera
Peter Persaud
Milton Philip
Nihal Ponweera
Marek Posival
Susil Premachandra
S A Premadasa
Sunil Premaratne
M Premasiri
Anura Priyantha
R.g. Ranoj Pyriyantha
Devjani Raha
A. R. Rahman
B.r.c. Rajasiri
Welegedara Ranasinghe
Suranga Ranawaka
R.m.v. Ratnayake
Mohamed Risran
Mohamed Rizva
Colin Rodrigo
Percy Rodrigo
Chris Ross
Akshay Roy
Juthikja Roy
Ranjith Rubesinghe
Inoka Nilanthi Ruhunge
Adhi Rutnam
Chandran Rutnam
L M Ruwan Wijenundara
G S Sachdev
Tuan Saiffadeen
M.j.l. Salgado
Devyani Saltzman
W Saman Kumara
Jayasiri Samaratunga
Film Details
Technical Specs
Award Nominations
Best Foreign Language Film
Quotes
Trivia
Miscellaneous Notes
Principal photography started on January 30, 2000 and went on hiatus due to trouble with the government and local uprisings. Production will reportedly resume in September 2000.
Released in United States Spring April 28, 2006
Limited Release in United States April 28, 2006
Released in United States on Video August 29, 2006
Released in United States August 2006 (Shown at Edinburgh International Film Festival (Director's Showcase) August 14-27, 2006.)
Released in United States January 2007 (Shown at Palm Springs International Film Festival (Awards Buzz ¿ Best Foreign Language Film) January 4-15, 2007.)
Released in United States Spring April 28, 2006
Limited Release in United States April 28, 2006
Released in United States on Video August 29, 2006
Released in United States August 2006
Released in United States January 2007
Shown at Edinburgh International Film Festival (Director's Showcase) August 14-27, 2006.
Shown at Palm Springs International Film Festival (Awards Buzz - Best Foreign Language Film) January 4-15, 2007.
Final installment in Deepa Mehta's "Elemental Trilogy," which began with Fire (1996) and continued with Earth (1998).
Hindu nationalists protesting the film delayed the shoot by destroying the sets.
Continued uprisings and government revoking of permits have stopped production of this film due to conflict with the film's subject matter.
Co-winner of the 2006 Bvlgari Award for NBR Freedom of Expression by the National Board of Review (NBR).
