ENTERTAINMENT 

Ahluwalia, who completed her film studies from Ryerson University, made her first short film Waiting that won the Best Film Award at Ryerson. She has also produced and directed a 12 minute short What Happened That Evening, a film  well received by audiences.  I Do. Do I? is Ahluwalia’s first venture as an independent film maker.

"Damned if you do and damned if you don't is the general idea people have about marriage,” says Ahluwalia.  “The protagonist Raj, played by Siddhant Sawant, is caught up in his own insecurities on the day of his engagement. Having cold feet, Raj believes that: ‘Once I put the ring on her finger, my life is over.’ Through the course of the evening he gets a chance to observe his family and friends in their relationships. Is he ready for marriage? Is it too soon for him? These are the questions that he is seeking answers for. Watch the film to find how Raj resolves his dilemma,” she says.
 
The 30-minute narrative, directed by Ahluwalia, came about because of her passion for films and film making.

“Right from my childhood, I was very much into drama and direction first at School in Loretto Convent and then in University.  At Loretto, I acted in lead roles in many plays and even directed plays.  In University, I directed plays and participated in interstate competitions.  Then I got married and had children, but when the children grew up, it was my husband who encouraged me to pursue my passion,” says Ahluwalia whose full time job is with Air Canada where she has worked for over 19 years.

“My husband said you should keep making films so that you are doing what you always had a passion for.  And in Canada, anything is possible.  So I started film classes at Ryerson in 2005 and stretched it over two years as I was working full time.  I then took a year off work and did film production and made ‘What happened that evening?” she says.

The Mississauga resident then realized that she needed hands on training and contacted renowned director Mahesh Bhatt through a contact in Mumbai.  

“I met Mahesh Bhatt in Mumbai and he saw my resume and realized how seriously passionate I was about films.  He immediately gave me the opportunity to work with him on Vishesh Films on the blockbuster film Kalyug.  I was Assistant director working on a volunteer basis and lived in Mumbai for six months.  It was a great experience,” says the film maker adding that Bhatt said he would let her direct her own films if she worked on a couple more projects with him.

“But I couldn’t give up my job with Air Canada because of financial reasons, so I returned to Canada,” she says.
 
It was then that she decided to direct her own film in Canada.  The film stars all Canadian actors including Uppekha Jain as Priya, Shivali Sikka as Reema, Farid Yazdani as Jay, Andrew Ahmed as Raymond and Kiran Mander as Kiran.  The story and screenplay is written by Ahluwalia’s son Jay Walia.  
 
“My son wrote the script within a week.  The film is the story of one evening and we shot non stop for three days at my own house.  It was a miracle but we managed to complete all the shooting.  It was almost like a party.  All the actors worked in the film on a volunteer basis.  They would sit around for hours and then after 12 hours we would say, we are now ready to shoot and they would get up and give me exactly what I was looking for.  It was amazing,” she says.  

The music in the film is by Vikas Kohli of Fatlabs who has composed two songs and provided the background music. 

“We had financial problems and post production was expensive.  So my son Jay bought a Mac and learnt to do editing himself.  We then gave the film for fine tuning to a seasoned professional Emad Mani,” she says adding that her son  has found his niche through this film.   

“I have seen the passion in him because of this film.  He would be up all night learning and editing at the same time,” she says urging everyone to watch the film. 

“It will bring a smile to your face,” she says confidently.