Tasveer, a South Asia-focused film and arts nonprofit has exciting news ahead of its signature annual film festival coming up in October. The film screenings usually take place in various venues rented across the city but this year will be different. Tasveer will now be able to host its 20th annual film festival in its own space.

The nonprofit Tasveer (‘picture’ in Urdu and Hindi) that has consistently used the arts to highlight social justice issues was awarded a USD 2.2 million grant last December from 4Culture, a funding agency in King County, Washington. This enabled Tasveer to purchase the historic Ark Lodge Cinema in the city's Columbia City neighborhood.

Tasveer co-founder and Executive Director Rita Meher says the grant is “an unbelievable gift”. “Our hard work, perseverance and continuity for 23 years is finally being acknowledged,” she told Sapan News. “We will take this gift and spread it to the wider community for the benefit of everyone.”

New foundations

The Ark Lodge Cinema provides Tasveer with a centralized location that is inclusive and accessible to the broader community.

“People are excited that it’s there for the future generations, for people of all colours, and it’s inclusive,” Shailaja Rao, board president of Tasveer and associate director of the film festival told Sapan News over a call from Seattle. She is also a founder member of the volunteer organisation Southasia Peace Action Network, or Sapan.

The Tasveer Film Festival started in 2004 – its formal name is the Independent South Asian Film Festival – is the brainchild of filmmaker Rita Meher and communication specialist Farah Nousheen, then a DJ, both Indian origin immigrants in Seattle.

The idea emerged in 2001 not long after the September 11 terrorist attacks in New York, when South Asians became targets of hate crimes. The co-founders wanted to challenge misconceptions and stereotypes about the South Asian community through awareness created by storytelling.

Stars have aligned

They weren’t specifically searching for a building, according to Shailaja Rao. But when the opportunity and funding aligned, they pursued it. One could say the building purchase was a serendipitous opportunity. Once the grant came through Tasveer’s purchase committee actively started to discuss the pros and cons she noted. As a functional space located in a diverse, convenient area, it was an attractive option for Tasveer.

The premises has three theaters, which Tasveer has already started using for events.

The Tasveer Film Center will also serve as the organization’s headquarters, with office space on the third floor. Along with the theaters there is a conference room which will be available for lease to the community, with special discounts for other nonprofit organizations and Tasveer members. As part of their broader strategy to create partnerships and collaborations with other film-related organizations.

For example, the Seattle Documentary Association currently has no space to showcase their films or a permanent office. Tasveer could offer a space to the Association, allowing them to use it for film screenings and potentially as an office location, says Rita Meher.

Tasveer’s plans include renovations to modernize the technology while preserving the historical character of the theater. They also plan to show films, host community workshops, and collaborate with other film festivals.

To bring those plans to fruition, the Tasveer team is meeting with fundraising consultants to develop a capital campaign with a goal of raising USD$14 million dollars, says Rita Meher.

Community connection

How do the local community feel about their new neighbors?

When they first moved in, Shailaja Rao and her team went door-to-door to tell neighboring cafes and restaurants about their new presence. The business owners seemed “very inclusive and happy” that someone had taken ownership of the previously empty building, seeing it as potentially good for their own businesses.

The revived theater and its activities will bring in a lot of people, which is obviously good for businesses in the area, she said.

Tasveer is committed to welcoming everyone regardless of their backgrounds, she adds. While diversity, equity and inclusion programs are being dismantled and deprioritized everywhere, Tasveer has bolstered its commitment to the mission through art, films, and storytelling.

South Asian Sundance

Their work really began in 2002 at the Elliott Bay Book Company, a local bookstore in Seattle with a documentary film screening and book discussion.

Barely twenty years later, in 2023, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences officially accepted Tasveeri as an Oscar-qualifying film festival. It is so far the only South Asian film festival to be officially recognized as such. This means that Tasveer film festival winners become eligible for submissions to the Oscars.

In conjunction with the film festival Tasveer introduced the Tasveer Film Market in 2024, Rita Meher’s brainchild. The Market aims to redevelop the financial and distribution models for South Asian filmmakers in North America by expanding their reach and fostering collaboration within the film industry. There are also plans to host networking and production events such as with the addition of a Producers Lab.

“This is a good thing to happen to a South Asian organization. We’re so excited that there’s a place we can call home,” says Shailaja Rao.

The bottom line is that regardless of the challenges and issues America faces, its pluralistic society and opportunities continue to enable people to come together and form strong, cohesive communities without losing their individual identities.

(The writer is coordinating editor, Sapan News. She can be reached at regina@sapannews.com. By special arrangement with Sapan)