SBI Impresario Pvt. Ltd. was incorporated in 1975 by Sorab Irani. Currently the company has fully matured. It has strong and reliable strategic alliances world wide along with a robust panel of freelance talent to draw upon, therefore it perceives its role today as one of Consultancy - sharing its knowledge and expertise with others to make their project successful.

Literary Agency
Farrukh Dhondy,Internationally renowned author, screenplay writer is the jewel in our crown in the Literary section.Besides publishing scores of English Fiction he is the erstwhile Commissioning Editor of Channel Four Television London where he commissioned extraordinary projects like "Salaam Bombay", "Bandit Queen" launching international directorial careers of Mira Nair & Shekar Kapoor respectively. Based in London with his presence very much in India he has written screenplays for Subhash Ghai's 'Kisna' & Ketan Mehta's 'The Rising' starring Aamir Khan. As his Literary Agents in India we have a good collection of his Stories, other writings ready for publication and Screenplays for Film Production. Above all he is a personal friend of our Chairman for the past 20 years and a tremendous inspiration for our company always ready to advise & participate wherever possible.

International Projects Under Development

Films

Bottomline

This is an international feature film project based on the life & crimes of the infamous Charles Sobhraj written for the screen by Farrukh Dhondy. This is not a project to glamorise a serial killer but instead explore the social phenomena of 'Redemption' 'Social & Legal Justice' 'Society's social & emotional response to crime & criminals'

Lovey Dovey
This is a project that examines the emotional working of NRIs in their adopted foreign environment, their relationship with their motherland which often makes them victims in their own homeland when pretence is used to cover up their failing abroad. It is a wonderful love story spanning India & England. Written by Farrukh Dhondy.
Identity Blues
This is a project, which looks at the religious divides not only in India but also in the U.S. It looks at racial divide & racism. A very bold erotic film about a relationship between a liberated Muslim girl who meets a Hindu boy on an American campus in USA and agrees to marry him just for one day. The fun begins when they return to India. Though very humorous it exposes many social truths and offers insights on the subject of one's true identity - written by Dr. Vivek Adarkar currently teaching Film Theory and Screenwriting in America at the C. W. Post of Long Island University a renowned university in America.
Om India
Conceived for IMAX and its Large Screen Format, this is a universal story. Probably for the first time attempting to bring fiction & drama to a mostly documentary format of filmmaking. The narrative is presented in a science fiction mould. Using India's ancient wisdom combining it with modern information technology. An American-born computer wizard in America stumbles upon an ancient tome of wisdom that allows him to create a software programme that can foretell the future of everyone in the world! But to complete and make operational the software programme he has devised he has to find the final truth in India. His adventure in pursuit of this truth is the bulk of the film revealing India's panoramic beauty, and the beauty of its historical monuments for the giant screen - Written by Dr. Vivek Adarkar.
Infinite Light AND 'Twilight Dawn
These are two Parsi feature films written by Farrukh Dhondy (a Parsi himself) for international audiences. While both these films concern themselves with the demographical fact of the Parsis soon to be extinct as a community, the approach in both the films are radically different. "Infinite Light" focuses on three generations of a Parsi family, their proud heritage & past glory. While in "Twilight Dawn" is more an agitprop treatment meant to galvanise the Parsis to act before it is too late.
ART

An International Contemporary Arts Festival
PARSIS- A VANISHING RACE… ?

This Arts Festival is conceived to evoke and synergize the Parsi art community's creative response to its present dilemma of an identity crisis.

Never before in the history of the Parsi community has it reached such a critical cross road in time as it finds itself today. Never before has there been a time that the community's decisions taken today will determine its survival or extinction.

The aim of the Arts Festival is above all the present perception of the Parsi identity and the Parsi artist expressing the uniqueness of being Parsi - Parsiness.

This Arts Festival addresses introspectively the crisis the community finds itself in at present asking pertinent questions and probably re-evaluating its relationship to history, to the world, to India and even to the tenets and boundaries of its own faith.

Posed from the realm of art and consigned to canvas in colours and form, in cinema and in photography, poetry, literature, sculpture, dance and music the artistic response will not be rhetorical, but will make clear the dramatic dimensions of the dilemmas facing the Parsi Zoroastrian communities of the world today. The faces of this rejuvenated identity as mirrored socially in the art forms at this festival, its myriad faces on display could possibly lead to the emergence of a Neo Parsi Identity Image in the collective consciousness of the Parsis that will endure in the future as it has done in the past.

Major Successful Projects Undertaken
Adlabs IMAX® Dome Theatre Project - Mumbai

The world's largest IMAX® Dome Theatre - Creating Indian cinematic history by being the first to bring 'The Large Film Format' to India.

Manmohan Shetty Chairman & Managing Director of Adlabs Films Ltd had a dream to bring to Indian audiences the IMAX® EXPERIENCE. Manmohan Shetty & Sorab Irani, Chairman of Sbi Impresario have been friends for the past 25 years, because Sorab Irani was a filmmaker & Adlabs was the Processing Lab he used. Manmohan Shetty knew that Sorab Irani was involved in international production & widely traveled besides being well versed in the ways of the western world and being a versatile & 'never say die' producer.

Being on the team Manmohan & Sorab traveled to America & Canada & visited all the operational IMAX® theaters there. Sorab covered most of the theatres on video. Raja Aederi was chosen as the architect, and work began in earnest. Sorab Irani was the Project Coordinator of the project, he had to coordinate with all agencies involved including IMAX® screen, projection, & seating which had to be imported to India. This was a great responsibility and every detail had to be attended to by Sorab Irani right from dealing with the Contractors, BMC building department, Reserve Bank, Licenses. Sorab rose to the challenge, the IMAX® theatre opened on time that too in a record time. Subsequently India's first multiplex with 4 Screens also opened. Manmohan Shetty's dream came true.

Advisor to the IMAX® 3D & 2D Gujarat Science City Project - Gandhinagar -The Government of Gujarat State
Owing to his experience the Government of Gujarat invited Sorab Irani to be Adviser to the multimillion dollars Gujarat Science city project.

MOU for Development of an Entertainment Park.
It Includes an IMAX® Theatre for 'Positra Special Economic Zone' - Gujarat Positra Port Infrastructure Ltd.
(A joint sector with Govt of Gujarat) and for the 'Maha Mumbai Special Economic Zone' being set up near Navi Mumbai.
Exclusive Mandate with 'Figueras International Seating'
A company dedicated to designing, manufacturing, selling and installing seating of both public & private installations. Installations in more than 60 countries including installations in the chain of Warner Bros Cinemas all over the world.

Film Productions

Produced under the Impresario banner have been many advertising and corporate films too numerous to mention. Only the critically acclaimed productions have been listed below:

Produced for Delhi Doordarshan - National Network "Rakshak"(1980) -a thirteen-part TV series as a docu drama on wildlife preservation shot on all major wild life sanctuaries in India.

Produced for Delhi Doordarshan -National Network "Project Tiger"(1982 - 83) - a thirteen part TV documentary series on the habitat of the Indian Tiger shot on all Tiger reserves all over India.

Produced the feature film -"Percy"(1985 - 87) -in Parsi Gujarati -Channel Four & NFDC Co-funded. "Percy" is the winner of the best feature film National Award in India & judged and awarded as best feature film award at Mannheim Film Festival in Germany.

Co-produced with Channel Four Television - "The Last House In Bombay"(1990 - 91) - a 52 minute documentary in 16mm. This was awarded the "Silver Conch" award as best feature length documentary at the Bombay International Film Festival for documentary & short films.A fly-on-the-wall documentary about a Punjabi family.

Produced for Channel Four Television -"The British Raj Through Indian Eyes"(1991 - 92) - a two -part 52-minute 16mm documentary. A reappraisal of Indian History during the British Raj of India.

Produced for Channel Four Television with D & N Productions Bangalore -"Something Like A War"(1992 - 93) -a 52 minutes documentary in 16-mm Awarded at Nyon Festival Switzerland. A critical study of the Family Planning Programme of the Government of India.

Produced with Double Battery Films Pvt. Ltd. Bombay for Channel Four Television- "Kisses On the Train"(1993) - a 40-minute fiction film- awarded at the Cinema Du Reel Paris. A short story about 2 adolescent girls who meet on a toy train which journeys to a hill station. By the end of the journey the lives of the two girls will never be the same again.

Produced for Channel Four "The Clap Trap"(1993 - 94) - a 52 minutes documentary in 16 mm. An observational style documentary on the 'Extras' of the Bombay Film Industry.

Produced with D & N Productions Bangalore for "Development Stories II" For BBC London " The Legacy of Malthus"(1994). This film examines the conventional view of people, population & migration & propounds new concepts.

Researched, Produced & Directed for Channel Four Television Corporation London A Travelogue series titled "Ramayana - A Journey"(1995 -97) in 6 parts of 25 minutes each.
Collins & Brown, London publish a Series Book "Ramayana - A Journey"
(95 / 96 - 97).
Times Music India Releases "Ramayana Ballads"(2002) - a musical rendering of the Ramayana in today's modern universal idiom, conceived & produced by Sbi Impresario.
Researched, Produced & Directed for OHM TV - The Netherlands - a documentary "Lord Ganesh - The Elephant Head God" (1997 - 98).
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