Manhattan, NY — Last week Khan’s Tutorial hosted a private screening of short film, Dawat for Ekushey February. The screening was held at Foley Gallery and included a panel with the cast and crew led by CEO of Brown Girl Magazine, Trisha Sakhuja-Walia. The film, set in Queens, NY tells the story of a young Bengali-American woman struggling against her family’s expectations to follow her dreams. Told over the course of a classic Bengali family dinner party, the short film explores the intergenerational relationship between a mother and her daughter as they come to terms with their pride and traditions in the face of a huge decision.
“As a Bangladeshi immigrant, I didn’t see faces like ours in American popular culture, TV, film, or music growing up. When I finally saw the Dawat trailer last year, I was for once, left speechless. I was overcome with emotion just thinking how long it took our community to get here. Of course, I thought back to my parents, my mom, my incredible mother in law and her relationship with my wife Nipa, all of it. My father always loved the arts so it was only right to host Dawat as an extension of our deep roots in Bengali culture. We’re thrilled to be able to support projects like Dawat and work towards greater representation for our community,” said Dr. Ivan Khan, CEO & President of Khan’s Tutorial.
“When we started this project, we said from the get-go, we’re going to have a 100% Bengali cast, we’re going to have gender equity and we’re going to have a majority people of color crew. Accountability has to start with ourselves,” said Executive Producer, Suswana Chowdhury.
With 10 locations in the outer boroughs of New York City, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and in the Jackson Heights, Jamaica, Astoria, Ozone Park, and Floral Park neighborhoods of Queens, Khan’s Tutorial primarily serves in assisting families in low-income, new immigrant neighborhoods. Since 1994, Khan’s Tutorial has helped 3,384 students gain admission to New York City’s Specialized High Schools.