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Namita Lal starring ‘Before Life After Death’ is streaming on Netflix. She plays the lead role in the film, directed by Anshul Tiwari and written by Debasmita Dasgupta.
“Set and shot entirely in Singapore the film is about a pregnant student who finds refuge and companionship with a gynaecologist who is mourning the death of her only daughter. It is the first time a story of Indian Families of diverse social classes living in Singapore has been showcased on film. The film reflects on issues of mental health, socio/ economic challenges of immigrants and emphasizes the power of sisterhood. I play the role of the gynecologist and it’s a tough, powerful role. I am someone who is dealing with intense grief and that reflects in the way I behave with my husband. The interaction with the teenager changes my life,” says the actor who made her debut in Indian cinema in Lihaaf which had a very successful festival run in India and abroad and was released on Voot.
Before Life After Death was shot in 2020-21, in Singapore. The cast includes well-known local film and theatre actors.
“We shot after the first lockdown in some amazing locations and we were very fortunate to finish it before the second lockdown. It is the debut feature film of award-winning short film and documentary director Anshul Tiwari. Writer Debasmita Dasgupta is an award-winning graphic book writer and illustrator. People from all parts of the world formed part of the crew and award-winning sound, music , and Color teams from India were involved in the post-production of this unique film. It’s a bilingual film in English and Hindi language and has a multicultural cast. Known Singaporean actor Adrian Pang plays a significant role in the film,” she reveals.
“The film first premiered in Singapore, International Film Festival, And we were very fortunate because it had a very good response from the audience. It is a very prestigious festival in Asia. It happened after a gap of two years and there were hundreds of films but our film got a significant premiere in the Singapore Panorama And we got to release it on Netflix in 92 countries straight after that, which is extremely big for us. ,” she sounds happy.
About any interesting incident that happened on the set, she shares,
“Our biggest challenge was that we were shooting after the first lockdown with a very big unit. And we got tremendous support from all the governmental and location agencies . We followed all the regulations and the unit was brave and courageous to shoot the film during those times. We were always under supervision on the sets. It will always be in my heart and will be my most memorable experience. And after all the hard work we are getting so much love and now we are releasing it on Netflix too.”
“Internationally, Indian films / actors / directors / producers / songs are doing well, be it the latest success of the Guneet Mongia’s / Kartiki Gonsalves Elephant Whisperers and ofcourse RRR at the Oscars. It’s a good time for Indians in any part of the world. I would like to congratulate the teams. It’s amazing that Citadel is also releasing on the same day which stars Priyanka Chopra [Jonas]. Then there is Diljit Dosanjh’s Coachella International performance making us all so proud . Our film is an Indian story set in Singapore. It makes us so proud to see Indians going out there and making a name. It’s a real matter of pride for all the Indians,” she says.
Audiences are much more evolved now given the exposure to global content.
“Cinema is rapidly evolving because of the evolution of the digital media and it is amazing. I see films from Spain- Money Heists, and Elite are doing well. It’s just incredible and also films from India are being watched all over the world. Even Before Life After Death will have multiple language subtitles. It’s just outstanding to be in the living rooms of so many people across the world. OTT is just making it so easy to watch and is accessible worldwide. Foreign content is being remade in India. The Good Wife India is releasing soon and I play a good role in that series. People are watching Indian films at International Festivals. I won best actress for Oxygen in the Boston International Film Festival, which is an IMDB-recognized award,” she adds.
