Agam Darshi is an award-winning actress, writer, and director. Born in England and raised all over Canada, she currently resides in Los Angeles, California. She recently wrapped on Ava DuVernay’s series “DMZ” for HBO Max. She had a lead role in Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy,” for which she was nominated for Canadian Screen Award in 2021. “Donkeyhead,” which she penned and stars in, marks her directorial debut.

“Donkeyhead” launches on Netflix in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia January 21. It hits select theaters in Canada March 11.

W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.

AD: I like to call “Donkeyhead” a “coming-of-age story a few decades late.” It’s about a woman named Mona who is nearing 40, and has been caring for her ailing father for the last seven years. When his health takes a turn for the worst, her three successful siblings come home to take care of the “situation.”

It’s about family, forgiveness, and moving on with life.

W&H: What drew you to this story?

AD: I love family dramas. I love coming-of-age stories. And I knew I wanted to make something like that that centered around a South Asian family.

The specifics of the story though come from my life and the lives of the people around me. I lived with my father for a year when he was diagnosed with cancer. I watched as my mother tirelessly cared for him.

Cancer is an ugly disease and so many of us have experience with it in some form. It was such an intense time in my life and my family’s life that I needed to process the experience through my writing.

W&H: What do you want people to think about after they watch the film?

AD: I want them to gain more understanding of South Asian culture and to realize that families are all the same.

The Sikh Punjabi culture, although abundant in America, is still mysterious in a lot of ways. We see men in turbans, but many of us feel disconnected to them and their communities, but hopefully anyone watching this film will see themselves in this family and come away feeling connected. I think that’s the biggest ask for any filmmaker: that your audience feels a little more connected to your world and the people you are putting a lens on.

W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?

AD: We shot during COVID-19, which was hard and scary.

We shot in Saskatchewan in January 2021, where it was literally -40 degrees sometimes. One night, the bike I was riding in the scene froze and we couldn’t use it. Another time our dolly froze. It’s harsh conditions, but it’s an environment so many new immigrants move to, so it felt appropriate to film there.

W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made. 

AD: It’s a Canadian film that received federal and provincial grants. It’s a long process and a competitive one, but there was a lot of love for the script, and people wanted to make it. We received Telefilm funding, Canada Media Fund, Sasktel Max Equity, Creative Saskatchewan , and BC and federal tax credits. But it still wasn’t enough.

My producers, Kelly Balon and Anand Raamaya, and I put our salary back into the film to get it made, and then when it was finished we found private investors to help close our funding gap.

W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?

AD: I’ve always loved stories. I loved theater and wrote plays growing up. I was the kid who forced my family and friends to make movies and do performances at gatherings.

The older I got and the more I acted, I always knew I would also tell my own stories eventually. It’s a need, something that I feel so passionate about. I feel thirsty to represent the underrepresented in my films, and create a space for their voices to be heard.

W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?

AD: Best advice: My dad always told me to keep writing. Even though he was an engineer, he never told me to do something practical with my life. But he always said that if I was going to act, I should also write and create work.

Worst advice: As an actor, to change my ethnicity and tell people I was half white, which I never did.

W&H: What advice do you have for other women directors? 

AD: I would tell them to write. To create. To take big steps. To bet on themselves.

In a practical sense, I would also tell them to direct for their budget. If you look at European films or Latin American films that have much smaller budgets than American films, they tell stories differently but nonetheless impactful. I think it’s really important to see what kind of budget you have and find smart ways to tell the story without trying to make the next Hollywood blockbuster because we don’t all have 60 days and $50 million to make a film. We can still make something beautiful with what we have in effective, imaginative ways.

W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.

AD: That’s so tough. I have so many. I loved “The Farewell” by Lulu Wang and I visited that film many times when I was making “Donkeyhead.” It deals with similar themes, but Lulu is so smart in the way she tells a story about a big family. Her beautiful compositions, her set design, the focused and intentional close ups were very inspiring.

I also love the 1994 version of “Little Women” directed by Gillian Anderson and adapted by Robin Swicord, two female storytellers. I loved the book and felt that it was so wonderfully and honestly turned into a film. The women were strong and vulnerable in a way that I think can only be told by female storytellers.

W&H: How are you adjusting to life during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are you keeping creative, and if so, how?

AD: Yes, strangely enough. It’s hard in many ways, as we know, but I’m still making films, still acting, still traveling for work and sometimes for pleasure without risking my health or the health of those around me.

To be honest, I also really enjoy the quietness that the pandemic has provided us. I like that less people are driving to work, and that I don’t have to go out as much to meet people. That sitting at home, answering these questions with a cup of tea is the new meeting at a coffee shop on Melrose to chat in person! I’m kind of OK with that.

W&H: The film industry has a long history of underrepresenting people of color on screen and behind the scenes and reinforcing — and creating — negative stereotypes. What actions do you think need to be taken to make it more inclusive?

AD: Exactly what you are doing now. Creating space for BIPOC filmmakers and storytellers to be seen and heard. For BIPOC storytellers to make art. For audiences to be political and intentional in the choices of movies they watch. These days I want to read books, watch movies, and support art that is created by or focused on people of color, not just because I crave their perspectives, but because it’s a political act, and if it resonates with me, I will tell five friends and maybe they will follow suit. The individual is powerful.