Before the Rains

By Cheryl Cheng -- Video Business, 9/8/2008

LIONSGATE
Street: Sept. 16
Prebook: now
> Indian drama about the cultural battle between East and West.

In the latest film from Santosh Sivan (Bride and Prejudice), British businessman Henry Moores (Linus Roache) attempts to build a spice plantation in ’30s India. Things become complicated, however, when his affair with Indian maid Sajani (Nandita Das) comes to the brink of being exposed by the village. Henry does everything possible to keep the affair a secret, including allowing his faithful servant T.K. (Rahul Bose) to take the blame. But, in the end, the ancient customs and laws of India overcome the Western practices. Bose gives a standout performance in this drama as T.K., an Indian who grapples with the traditional ways of his village and the more contemporary ways of his British boss.

Shelf Talk: Roache (TV’s Law and Order) and Jennifer Ehle (TV’s Pride and Prejudice), who has a minor role as Henry’s wife, are fairly well known, as is director Sivan, but Before the Rains will still need a significant push at retail. There has been an increase in films set in India (The Namesake, Marigold, Outsourced), so this one should be marketed alongside those and other similar titles. 

Drama, color, PG-13 (mild violence, sexual content), 98 min., DVD $27.98
Extras: director’s commentary, interviews
Director: Santosh Sivan
First Run: L, May 2008, $1 mil.