Women and Hollywood is teaming up with ARRAY to present the virtual premiere of Deepa Mehta’s “Funny Boy,” a coming-of-age drama set in ’70s and ’80s Sri Lanka that’s been named Canada’s Best International Film submission for the 2021 Academy Awards.
You must RSVP to attend the virtual premiere. The film will be screening from December 6-9, and will be followed with an exclusive Q&A with Mehta and screenwriter Shyam Selvadurai on December 9 at 4 p.m. PST/7 p.m. EST.
Check out a synopsis for “Funny Boy,” its trailer, and event details below.
A moving look at a young man coming-of-age amid sweeping political strife, “Funny Boy” follows Arjie from boyhood to his teens in Sri Lanka of the ’70s and ’80s. Raised in the elegant world of wealthy Tamils, a minority group in a largely majority Sinhalese country, Arjie loves dressing up like a bride for pretend wedding ceremonies with his girl cousins. Oblivious to the whispers between his parents and other relatives, Arjie cannot understand why they call him “funny,” though he knows it’s a “bad” thing. When his magnetic, free-spirited aunt Radha returns to the family home and embraces Arjie for all that he is, the two develop an unbreakable bond. As Arjie, Radha, and their entire family’s lives are irrevocably impacted by simmering tensions in their country that erupt into civil war, an indelible story about love, identity, and freedom unfolds.
