Deepa Mehta

Born on: 1 January, 1950
Born in: Amritsar, Punjab, India
Career: Film Director, Film Producer, Screenwriter

Deepa Mehta came up to top ranks of artists with her epic trilogy of films named after the elements: Fire, Earth and Water. She is a film director who is concerned with the status of women. This has earned international attention with her films. She is considered by many as one of the finest new directors on the horizon. Mehta had strong ties to India even after she became a Canadian citizen. She is quickly becoming the voice of a new India. Her work shows who she really is and she is proud and satisfied of the title and name she has earned. She is known for her politeness and strong will and is regarded as a film director or scriptwriter who mainly focuses on the grievances and miseries of life. Her films mostly include her life experiences too. Her main purpose is to challenge the blind beliefs and traditions of our country. Read on to know more about Deepa Mehta, her life and childhood.

Early Life
Deepa Mehta was born in Amritsar in northwestern India in 1950, but she moved with her parents to the capital city of New Delhi when she was a child. Her family spoke English at home. Mehta attended Welham Girls High School, a boarding school for girls in Dehradun and graduated from the University of Delhi with a degree in philosophy. She grew up with India's vigorous film industry in her blood, for her father worked as a film distributor. She grew up in a film industry family. The family's fortunes rose or fell according to the success of her father's latest releases. "I grew up with cinema, with Friday-night openings and Monday-morning grosses," she told Carrie Rickey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. It was a favorite family maxim that there are two things one never knows: when one is going to die, and how a film will do at the box office. At first, she showed a little interest in a film career, majoring in Hindu philosophy at the University of New Delhi. She immigrated to Canada in 1973.

Career
After finishing her studies, Mehta made a few short documentaries for an Indian studio. She began her cinematic career writing scripts and documentaries for children's films. She also made several documentaries of her own. Deepa Mehta has never shied away from voicing her thoughts, using cinema as her medium. She has written, directed and produced movies and television shows since 1975. Her movies are outrageously honest, the most controversial of which were the Elements Trilogy: Fire, Water and Earth. Her biggest success so far was the romantic comedy Bollywood/Hollywood (2002), which was nominated for five Genie awards (including Best Picture), winning Best Original Screenplay. She also co-founded Hamilton-Mehta Productions, with her husband, producer David Hamilton in 1996.

Contributions
Deepa Mehta's contributions were mostly to the film industry. Her documentaries targeted the social issues and issues related to women. She has also expressed her views and opinions through books and periodicals.

Awards and Accolades

Timeline

1950: Born in Amritsar, Punjab, India.
1973: Migrated to Canada.
1991: Directed Sam & Me, which won the Camera D'Or at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival.
1994: Directed a one-hour episode of the ABC-TV series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles on location in Benares, India.
1996: Co-founded Hamilton-Mehta Productions, with her husband, producer David Hamilton.
1998: She came up with the movie Earth.
2002: Bollywood/Hollywood.
2004: The Republic of Love.
2005: Water.
2008: Heaven on Earth.
2009: Exclusion.