Meru is a stunning and inspiring film that captures the gruelling and difficult journey of renowned mountaineers Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin and Renan Ozturk’s ascent of Mount Meru in Garhwal Himalayas in Uttarakhand, India. The film won the audience award at the 2015 Sundance International Film Festival. How did the mountaineers prepare for their journey? What did… Continue Reading
In 2013 South Korean director Bong Joon-Ho released his first English film Snowpiercer in the US. The film is based on a graphic novel by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochelle, which Joon-Ho read in one sitting at a bookstore in South Korea. It took him a few years before he was able to make the… Continue Reading
Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi are the directors of The Boxtrolls, a 3D, stop animation film from Laika Entertainment. The film is based on Anthony Snow’s book Here Be Monsters. Annable and Stacchi adapted the boxtrolls characters from Snow’s book and called it The Boxtrolls. In this podcast interview we spoke to Annable and Stacchi about… Continue Reading
Over the years I have had people ask why my podcast inteviews are not up on my YouTube channel. I heard them, but was unsure if I should mingle my TV/video interviews with my audio. In the last few months that request has only grown and I can no longer ignore them. So, starting today I… Continue Reading
It is always a challenge to figure out which shows to attend at the San Jose Jazz Summerfest. And this year was no different. On the last and third day of the festival I ended up watching Storm Large and her band. She is a sassy, no-nonsense singer, who effortlessly went from singing a… Continue Reading
San Jose Jazz is celebrating its 26th Summerfest (Aug 7-9, 2015). With a dizzying array of shows spread across 12 stages it is always a challenge to figure out which ones to attend. I ended up watching about 5 shows today that included a wonderful world premiere of Etienne Charles‘s San Jose Suite. The piece pays homage… Continue Reading
Best of Enemies is a riveting documentary film that takes you back to the 1968 Presidential elections and the intense politcal debate between William F. Buckley and Gore Vidal on ABC. Buckley and Vidal represented and stood for two different visions of America during this time. The debate was not a loud one, but a… Continue Reading
Best of Enemies is a new documentary film about the famous and sharp-edged political debtate between William F. Buckley (R) and Gore Vidal (D) during the 1968 Presidential elections. The debate took place on ABC television and was a hug success because of the sparks that flew between these two intellecutal giants of that… Continue Reading
It was 26 years ago that the San Jose jazz festival began and today it has morphed into a 3-day festival. This year’s San Jose Jazz Summerfest (Aug 7-9, 2015) will feature over 100 performers spread across 12 stages spread across 12 blocks in downtown San Jose. It is not just jazz that you get… Continue Reading
Happy birthday Robin Williams wherever you are. And you were spot on when you said: “No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.” You changed my world and that of millions of people with your own, unique brand of humor. You brought us laughter, happiness and joy and made our… Continue Reading
All Spice is an elegant restaurant located in the Nob Hill area of San Francisco. The brainchild of Chef Sachin Chopra and his wife Shoshana Wolff, it is not your everyday Indian restaurant as its name might lead you to believe, but one that serves New American Exotica – and, believe me, there comes a surprise with every… Continue Reading
Garlic. The smell of stinking rose will tickle your nose as you travel south on Highlway 101 from San Jose to Gilroy. Located about 25 kilometers from San Jose, Gilroy is often described as the “Garlic Capital of the World.” And it comes as a surprise to many people when they discover that Gilroy is… Continue Reading
Matthew Heineman’s Cartel Land is an intense, immersive, unsettling and at times nerve-wracking film that takes you into the center of Mexican drug cartels. Heinemann shows us how citizens in Mexico and the US are waging a war of their own to control the violent and corrupt consequences of this drug war. The lack of… Continue Reading
Who was Amy Winehouse? Yes, we all know she was a talented and a 6-time Grammy winning British musician, who died tragically at the age of 27. But, who was the real Amy Wineshouse? How did she die and how did this happen in this day and age in London? These were some of the questions… Continue Reading
For those of you who thought my show – The Kamla Show – is available only online I have news for you. It is actually a weekly TV show that airs in many markets in the San Francisco bay area, and in a couple of places on the East Coast. And if everything goes well… Continue Reading
Finally, it is here – the first full length trailer of Steve Jobs by director Danny Boyle. Michael Fassbinder essays the role of Jobs, and he is practically unrecognizible. Seth Rogen plays Steve Wozniak, co-founder and the tech wizard of Apple. The film is based on Walter Isaacson’s book Steve Jobs. The book was blessed by… Continue Reading
What Happened, Miss Simone by Liz Garbus is a powerful and riveting film that will leave you in a reflective and pensive mood. In the film we see the many avatars of this gifted & volatile singer, composser and activist, who cast her spell on us. We see “The High Priestess of Soul,” during her good… Continue Reading
Last week I interviewed filmmaker MayaForbes about the making of her debut film “Infinitely Polar Bear.” In this video highlight Forbes talks about the title of the film and her sister China Forbes of Pink Marini’s contribution in the film. She also talks about the early support she got from director J.J.Abrams. “Infinitely Polar Bear,”… Continue Reading
Pixar’s “Inside Out,” is funny, absorbing and packs quite a punch that leaves you thinking. Thinking about what you ask? Why, those little voices inside our heads that we ignore. You know joy, sadness, anger, disgust and fear? The film brilliantly captures the various voices of 11 year old Riley Anderson and how they shape… Continue Reading
San Jose Jazz Summerfest celebrates its 26th year from August 7-9, 2015. The 3 day celebration will see over 100 performances spread across 12 stages in downtown San Jose. There is something for every one from jazz to blues to salsa to soul to zydeco music. The opening night features San Francisco Bay Area’s Con Brio and… Continue Reading
Oscar winner AR Rahman did not disappoint his audience, and it was surreal to watch and hear the adulation that he got from his audience in Silicon Valley. AR Rahman’s Intimate Concert Tour was a sold out event on June 11 and June 12 in San Jose. AR as he is known is on a… Continue Reading
“Baar Baar Dekho” means look and look again. I’d say listen and listen to this song again. This delightful track is from Shillong Chamber Choir of India. They do a great job of fusing a 1962 Bollywood or Hindi song with a jazz standard ‘S Wonderful, by Gershwin brothers from the 1927 Broadway musical “Funny Face.”… Continue Reading
I missed the screening of Paul Feig’s “Spy,” which I was so looking forward to watching. Well, I made up for it by watching it on the first day. I was not disappointed, and neither was the audience in the theatre. It was a houseful show as they say in India when you have a… Continue Reading
Meet Bombay Jayashri, an Oscar nominated singer from India. She composed and sang the opening lullaby in Ang Lee’s “Life of Pi” which was filmed partly in India. Jayashri trained as a tradiational Carnatic or South Indian classical musician.What is unusual about Jayashri is that she sings traditional South Indian classical music, Indian film music and has… Continue Reading
Bill Pohlad’s “Love & Mercy,” is a compassionate film about Brian Wilson, the gifted and creative co-founder of the Beach Boys. This California band defined American music in the 1960s, and were a huge source of inspiration and influence to many musicians in the US and around the world, including the Beatles. We caught up with Pohlad at this year’s San Francisco… Continue Reading
Marryam H. Reshii is a New Delhi-based food writer, who has her pulse on all things related to food in her city. She is the author of Celebrated Chefs of India, Eating out in India and 101 Popular restaurants. She is a Consulting Editor with the Times of India for their Times Food Guide. In this interview, which we… Continue Reading
Filmmaker Prashant Bhargava passed away on May 16, 2015. He was 42 years old. Bhargav was a young, talented filmmaker, who is deeply mourned by his fans, friends and family. Bhragava had a brilliant eye and ear for stories, details and colors. His films like “Patang,” and “Radhe Radhe,”were visually stunning. I had an opporuntunity to interview Bhargav… Continue Reading
“San Andreas” is a new disaster film starring Dwayne Johnson. I won’t even want to go into the storyline since it is so predicatable. Johnson’s personal life is in shambles and he is the middle of a divorce, when California is hit by a swarm of massive earthquakes. So, while the Golden State is falling apart… Continue Reading
Imagine being connected to another human being in a different part of the world and you can hear, feel and see everything about them. You know their secrets and their history. Well, imagine no more. Michael Straczynski and the Wachowskis have created a new Netflix original series called “SENSE8” where 8 strangers around the world are connected to each other.… Continue Reading
Meet Madhur Jaffrey – an award-winning actress, cookbook author and the host of TV cooking shows that helped demystify Indian cooking. Born in British India, Jaffrey went to London to study acting and relocated to the USA in the late 1950s. She currently lives in New York with her family. When Jaffrey moved to England… Continue Reading
The Kamla Show 