Australian singer-composer Guy Sebastian makes his acting debut in Hindi Vindi, a new, musical Indo-Australian co-production that deals with language barriers, the power of music in communication, cultural identity and the delicate relations of the family. Photos: Supplied.
Former judge on The Voice and winner of the first season of Australian Idol in 2003, singer-composer Guy Sebastian, makes his acting debut in the refreshing Australian-Indian co-production Hindi Vindi.
It has a deeply moving narrative that explores themes of identity, family and the transformative power of music. It examines intergenerational language barriers within the immigrant community, and lends another dimension to the spoken words: “When words fail, music speaks.”
Hindi Vindi not only marks a breakthrough for Australian and Indian cinema, but it also lends credence to it being one of the first feature films made following the recently signed India-Australia Co-Production Treaty.
Sydney-based writer-director Ali Sayed (Lost in Transit, The Red Envelope) realised the need to make such a film after arriving in Australia with his young family in 2017.
He noticed the language barrier between his children and their grandparents, and realised every migrant growing up in Australia was most likely facing this issue. However, no-one was talking about it. Hence came the motivation behind making Hindi Vindi, his directorial debut as a feature filmmaker.
This musical drama relates the story of Kabir (played by rising Bollywood star Mihir Ahuja, The Archies, Hunter – Tootega Nahi, Todega), an Indian-origin Australian teenage musician on a journey of self-discovery. He races against time to create a song in a language he doesn’t speak. Guy Sebastian plays Kabir’s Anglo-Indian father, James.
Kabir is conflicted about his cultural identity and struggles with a language barrier when his Indian maternal grandmother, Arya – portrayed by award-winning Indian actor/filmmaker Neena Gupta (Badhaai Ho, Woh Chokri, Uunchai) – comes to live with him in Sydney. While the relationship between the two is strained, they find messages can be conveyed through the life-changing language of music.
Mihir Ahuja (left) and Neena Gupta in Hindi Vindi.
James is a single dad who has a shaky bond with his son. Kabir struggles at school, and even punches a kid who makes a hurtful comment about his mother. Things take a dramatic turn when James gets arrested. Feeling lost, Kabir misses his mother, Richa (Bhakti Kubavat). With help from his friend Rihanna (Rupanty Akid, who was born and raised in Australia, Angti, Hello Bangladesh), Kabir connects with Arya, but there is a language barrier since she does not speak English and he does not know Hindi.
There are some funny moments as they try to communicate, but the situation becomes tense when Kabir yells at Arya for not understanding English. Afterwards, when Arya suffers a stroke and ends up in hospital, the grandson decides to learn Hindi to connect with her.
Hindi Vindi has opened up an exciting new chapter in Sebastian’s extraordinary professional journey. He said there was a lot in this movie that he could draw on personally.
“My mum is from India and she had a pretty tough life,” he said. “She was orphaned fairly young. Her story parallels that of my wife in the film. My character gets married and takes her away from her family and that is kind of what happened to my mum. At 19, she moved away from her family, so there is a lot to tap into.”
Sebastian also contributed to the film’s soundtrack, writing and performing on three of the seven original songs, alongside renowned Bollywood film composers Javed-Mohsin. The result is a beautiful fusion of traditional Indian and Western music that celebrates healing and the metamorphic sway of melody. Sebastian’s composition Made of Heart features as the film’s lead single.
By bonding over music, Kabir discovers a new-found appreciation for his family, the Hindi language and connection to his Indian heritage. This teen bridges cultural gaps through music as he blends Australian hip-hop with traditional Hindi compositions for his grandmother.
Sayed explains this film, co-written with producer Jayant Sharma, “comes directly from the heart”, a coalescence of the ethos of a contemporary India and Australia. The baseline and glue of the story is music.
“The grandmother is a musician from India, while by coincidence, her grandson is an aspiring musician. They bond over music. The five songs that we have created are all embedded in the screenplay as essential elements – so that the story will be incomplete without the music.”
Filmed in Sydney, this heart-warming, emotional and sincere melodious journey of an Aussie-Indian boy explores themes of individuality, ancestors and the universal language of music.
Hindi Vindi, written and directed by Ali Sayed, was released in cinemas on 27 February and is streaming on digital platforms
