It's that time again... for the annual SikhNet Youth Online Film Festival!

Big ups to my man Mr. SikhNet for always of thinking of new ways to promote Sikh youth to take an active role in their community.

I had the pleasure to hang out with Gurumustuk when he was in DC a couple weeks back. Within one day, we shot five quick promo videos for this year's film festival. It took me about another week to edit all five.

The neat part of this challenge was to use a very simple camcorder, pretty much like the one in your home, and shoot these quick promos.

So... you have no excuse not to make a video! =)

Take a look at the five promos shorts below. The Nihung Singh's are my favorite ones.

Check out these five promos, plus the last one made by Ambrosial Motion Pictures. Enjoy.

The deadline for this year's film festival is August 31st, 2007. Cash prizes are being awarded, and any age group can enter the competition. Check out the logo below for more information.

So what are you waiting for you bama? Make a movie for the festival this year before Nihung Singh comes after you!

I'm pooped. Later.

Happy Birthday, and Thanks!

Silent contributions are the best way to help your community. That’s my personal philosophy.

My dear Friends, 2006 was the inaugural year of Dashmesh Pictures and the RestoringThePride.com effort. This March 2007 brings us to our one year anniversary towards both of these efforts.

Thanks to everyone, both Sikh and Non-Sikh, who have supported this initiative by spreading the word on Sikh on the Street, by taking the bold step to have their artwork promoted here, by ordering and distributing freely the DVD, by supporting the film festivals, as well as writing the vast amount of supportive emails in regards to this website.

Not much was expected when starting this project up one year ago. After encouragement from various individuals to post all created video projects online, the website was launched with one specific goal in mind: to promote the awareness and acceptance of those who are members of the Sikh religion among their community and society.

The post 9/11 world has changed many individual’s perspectives to define what truly makes up a person’s nationality and cultural heritage – two items that were challenged and are continued to do so today. With this challenge some may feel to loose pride in whom they are and feel to it might be easier to assimilate to the mainstream and forget the rich traditional infrastructure provided by their ancestral roots.

When one overcomes this challenge, and recaptures their pride, they are gifted with the vision to live in a world that captures the best of both of worlds – where one can walk anywhere in this world and remain culturally strong in their ethnic roots.

The intent of both Dashmesh Pictures and RestoringThePride.com is to reinvigorate that pride of any Sikh who may feel challenged in today’s world. Examples of some of these successes can be seen by Gatka 1, Sikh on the Street, Akaal Media, Sikh Service in World Wars, and the recently added artwork of Harpreet Singh. And who knows, maybe even works like these can encourage Non-Sikhs to reinvigorate themselves to also explore and learn their own personally cultural heritage.

Hopefully in 2007 this endeavor continues to grow and grow strong. One of many items the team here has been working slowly and quietly been working on a sequel to the Gatka 1 film. With the short several years in the making, I only hope that this sequel will be as successful as the original short.

So thanks for hearing my thoughts. Let’s all get back to what we were doing, and continue to strengthen ourselves in whatever it is we stand for. Our stance here is to quietly educate individuals, one at a time, to who the Sikhs are and the valor of their heritage.

One of the greatest items I enjoy walking around is when people look at me and do a double take and say “Hey, you’re that guy who did those interviews right?” or “Have you seen RestoringThePride.com?” when they have no knowledge to who I am.

Silent contributions.

In short, thank you.

V/R,

Sartaj Singh Dhami

Over 17k hits on YouTube. I really hope that equates to 17k more individuals who have learned about Sikhism. Download the video here.

Hey California, what are you doing on 02/03/07?

Why there is only one thing to do, which is to go to the Bay Area's Spinning Wheel Film Festival! This year's Film Festival will be in the Cubberley Auditorium at Standford University’s School of Education.

Luckily the fine folks at Dashmesh Pictures (who?) will have two of their successful shorts shown at this event. As seen in Toronto and Washington DC last October, the SWFF Bay Area Film Festival will show Gatka 1: The Experimentation and The Sikh on the Street.

It's great honor to have these two simple shorts part of their 2007 lineup. A big shout out to the Bay Area Committee who thought about us.

Two other really good films will be shown at this event as well that are a must watch, as seen below:

The Gold Braclet
Written, Directed, and Produced by Kavi Raz

A great fictional film, based on a true story, which artistically capturing the 9/11 aftermath faced by the Sikh community in the United States.












Amu
Directed by Shonali Bose

Another great fictional film that I got to watch at Houston Camp which covers the post 1984 massacre in India where thousands of innocent Sikhs were killed.








So what are you waiting for California? Go support and attend this event.

See ya at the movies!