Ithaca College

Ithaca College will host a free public screening of the cross-cultural romantic comedy “When Harry Tries to Marry,” followed by a discussion with three of the participants in the film. The showing will take place on Friday, Feb. 18, at 4 p.m. in Park Auditorium. Taking part in the discussion will be writer/director/producer Nayan Padrai, producer Sheetal Vyas and actress Lauren LoGiudice.

About the Film:

Harry is an Indian-American college student in New York City who shocks his assimilated family as well as his friends when he insists that he wants a traditional arranged marriage in an effort to avoid being disappointed by love like his bitterly divorced parents.

Just as Harry thinks he’s found the perfect Indian bride, though, he begins to wonder if his friendship with a lovely fellow student isn’t something more. With the wedding plans well under way, Harry is running out of time to choose between a love that’s arranged and one that he’s found himself.

“When Harry Tries to Marry” had its world premiere last October 22 at the Austin Film Festival and was shown a week later at the Mumbai Film Festival. It was featured at the Sundance Institute Independent Producers’ Conference, named to the Winners’ Circle at the Texas Film Institute Screenplay Contest, made the top–10 finalist list in Creative Screenwriting’s Expo Screenplay contest and was a semifinalist in the Writer’s Network Screenplay Competition.

About the Panelists:

Nayan Padrai, Director, Producer and Co-writer
Born in Mumbai but a New Yorker since early childhood, Nayan studied screenwriting and filmmaking at The School of Visual Arts, NYC. In his early twenties, Padrai trained with some of the finest acting teachers in New York, which gave him the foundation to write characters and dialogue. Padrai was the Co­‐Founder and President of CineMaya Media, one of the largest South Asian media, entertainment and marketing conglomerates in the U.S. There, Padrai wrote, produced and/or directed over 300 hours of Indian television programming across genres, oversaw publication of several newspaper titles, the development of a radio station and television network, and founded an advertising agency which was one of the top 15 multi-­cultural advertising agencies.

Sheetal Vyas, producer
Prior to joining Padrai’s 108 Production in 2009, Vyas’ work experience included positions at UTV, Channel V, Zee Telefilms and Cinemaya Media Group. At UTV she was assistant producer of varied programs for multitude of channels. She was an Associate producer on India’s most popular film awards show, Zee Cine Awards ,where she had an opportunity to work with international stars such as Keanu Reeves, Bryan Adams and Sting.

Lauren LoGiudice, Actress
Lauren is an actor and model based in New York City. She appears in advertisements as well as in numerous independent short and feature films ("When Harry Tries to Marry", "Flick's Chicks", "Reality Check"). She also performs as a storyteller. Her recent solo show "Queens Girl" toured worldwide to acclaim. In February her production company Over/Under Productions is releasing a series of episodic sketch comedy shorts based on Lauren's cranky Italian grandma character, Carmella Ravoli. Stay tuned at www.laurenlogiudice.com.

The screening and discussion are sponsored by the Roy H. Park School of Communications and the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures.

Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations should contact Melissa Gattine at the Roy H. Park School of Communications (mgattine@ithaca.edu, 274-1023). We ask that request be made as soon as possible.