drexel university westphal

A Cinematic Saraswati Puja

Congratulations, Abhijit Chowdhury, Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at Drexel University in the Screenwriting & Playwriting Program. His screening and Q&A at Saraswati Puja last Saturday in Delaware was just incredible.

“Abhijit is a highly acclaimed Bengali filmmaker, known for his exceptional work in films and web series. Some of his notable productions include “Manbhanjan,” “Aste Ladies,” “Turu Love,” “Johny Bonny,” and many more. His unique storytelling and captivating narratives have garnered him a loyal fan base and critical acclaim. We are honored to have Abhijit Chowdhury grace our event and share his insights with our community. This is a wonderful opportunity for all of us to learn from his experiences and gain valuable knowledge about the world of filmmaking.”
Bengali Association of Delaware Valley – BADV

Storytelling Workshop for Actors

Awesome. Philly area Bengali theatre ensemble Kushilob, known for often writing collaboratively and exploring diverse theatre forms, is hosting Drexel’s first Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence Abhijit Chowdhury who will be teaching a workshop on playwriting for actors this weekend. For more info, contact Kushilob directly via their facebook page.

Read my recap, “The Universal Language of Cinema“, in Drexel Westphal’s latest newsletter.

The Work Begins

42311795_10156688650321350_8850526673213325312_n — Soumya Sankar Bose and Shyamal Dihidar

Yesterday the work began in earnest with my interview of actor-director Shyamal Dihidar who’s been doing Jatra theatre since age 10. I met him through his nephew (also pictured) Soumya Sankar Bose, a Kolkata-based art photographer. His uncle was kind enough to take a train 150km into the city for the interview which I held upstairs at a corner table of the cafe at the Oxford Bookstore.

42301088_10156688656566350_6133912923090714624_n — Shyamal Dihidar and Yours Truly

The Canon EOS Rebel T6 video camera and tripod that I brought with me paid off. And many thanks to Drexel University’s Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design for lending me a Zoom sound recorder for 3 months. Also many thanks to Oxford staff for taking it upon themselves to turn off the store music while I was recording.

Mine is not an official US Department of State website. The views and information presented are my own and do not represent the Fulbright Program or the Department of State.

Looking for Screaming Jenny

Amtrak Residency, Day 2. The Capitol Limited and Harpers Ferry, WV.

Amtrak Residency, Day 1

About to ride the Amtrak Residency rails and write. Philly to DC to board Capitol Limited overnight to Chicago, then California Zephyr to SF and back. See youse (as they say in South Philly) in 10 days.

Ensign Vernon "Copy" Berg, 1974. — Ensign Vernon “Copy” Berg, 1974.

Mainly I’ll be working on a polish of a screenplay, working title LITTLE ROCK, a bio-pic of artist Vernon “Copy” Berg, the first officer to legally challenge the US military for anti-gay discrimination in 1975. It’s adapted from the memoir Get Off My Ship: Ensign Berg v. the US Navy by E. Lawrence Gibson, Berg’s partner at the time.

I applied for this award because my wife told me about it and knows of my love of trains. In particular Continue reading “Looking for Screaming Jenny”