Filming Starts on Mira Nair's 'The Namesake'

By James Wray Mar 29, 2005, 18:09 GMT

The film is based on the novel of the same name

The film is based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri, the novel being adapted by Sooni Taraporevala.

The Namesake is the story of the Ganguli family whose move from Calcutta to New York evokes a lifelong balancing act to meld to a new world without forgetting the old. Though parents Ashoke and Ashima (Irfan Khan, Tabu) long for the family and culture that enveloped them in India, they take great pride in the opportunities their sacrifices have afforded their children. Paradoxically, their son Gogol (Kal Penn) is torn between finding his own unique identity without losing his heritage. Even Gogol's name represents the family's journey into the unknown.

Nair says the film is her most personal film so far: "The Namesake encompasses in a deep humane way the tale of millions of us who have left one home for another, who have known what it means to combine the old ways with the new world, who have left the shadow of our parents to find ourselves for the first time."

Fox says Kal Penn brings to the role of Gogol a deep understanding of the American-born Indian character. Penn's breakthrough role was in last summer's hit film "Harold and Kumar go to White Castle." After wrapping production on The Namesake, he will begin shooting "Superman Returns."

The supporting cast includes Irfan Khan, Tabu, Jacinda Barrett, Zuleikha Robinson, Glenne Headley and Brooke Smith.INDA.

The film will be shot in New York and Calcutta.

You can read more about the novel in our database and read a summary of the film on this page.