Seeking the Jews of

@ Salaam Shalom: The Jews
of India Tuesday, Nov. 23,
9 p.m., Vision TV, Ch. 40.

Katharine Ham

News Reporter
katharine@nsnews.comt

WHEN most travellers
imagine India, they

think of the Taj Mahal,
of gurus, of tigers and
elephants folling in the

Few’ imagine finding a
synagogue in the middle of'a.
crowded Bombay street.’
“Bur that’s exactly what
Vanessa Laufer was in search
of when she went to the sub-
continent to film Salaain
Shalom: The Jews of India.
«Premiering on Vision TV
Nov: 23, Laufer’s documen-
iary Explores the little-known
Jewish communities of India.
“ST had_to fly all the way to
India to find cut_about my

own background,” says the. ~

Toronto-based writer/pro-
ducer/director, who. as the
daughter of a Jewish father
and Anglican mother had
often: been told’ that she was

‘ding to Jewish tra

is passed down :

ermal. line

‘was angry that some-.
i0ught they could tell.
am,” Laufer says.

fon mieten t
kosher, than, their

gests that
bcontirent.

Taunitie: 5: the Bene’ Israel; the

Cochini, the Baghdadi, and

the B’nei Menashe.

Of these, all but the 1 Bene

Israel view theniselves

being Jews above ail else.
“Firsy and foremost, Pm

“Jewish,” says one Iderly po
“woman. “]'m Indian, but I'm
; Jewish.” .

:“There’s no con t at

all,” Laufer says, “they're

very conifortable in their
identity.”

Those featured in Lauler’s s
film study.the Talmud,
adhere to reli 1
and wear yarmulkahs. In |

Smany ways, they seem even

more orthodox than. Westen
Jews: Perhaps — though
Indian Jews suffer no preju-
dice from their- neighbours —
it-is even more difficult for -
them to retain their Jewish

identity. in the vast sea of var-
ied tradition that exists in’
India itself...

“There are one billion

copie in India, and only
BO DO Jews,” says Laufer. .
“They're a drop in the buck-
et in such a densely populat-
ed country.”

The Jewish population in
India has been dwindling for"
the last 50 years. Both the

declaration of Indian inde-

pendence, in 1947, and the

“establishment of the Stare. of

israel in 1948 have con-~

_, tributed to an exodus of
- Indian Jews.

Some have gone to Isracl,

and some —- particularly the —
. ; Baghdadi Jews who already

had culrurai ties with the

- British Raj — to the U.K. or.

See India: Page 28

Salaam Shalom: The Jews of India ughtlighis the littie known Judaic communi-.
ties of Bombay. a ,

Friday, November 19, 1999 — North Shore News - 25

THIS WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS

> Wild Reeds — Monday on Showcase
> The Book of Life —- Tuesday on Showcase
> Dead Man —- Wednesday on Showcase

SATURDAY
BS MOVIE # 4% Shadow of a Doubt (1943) (Knowledge
Nenvork Channel 5, 10 p.m.) Charlie (Teresa Wright) sts-
‘ vournte uncle (Joseph Cotten) may be a murder-
al Hitchcock’s suspense masterpices.

OMEDY Saturday Night Live (Global, NBC Channels
32 12:05 a.m.) Jennifer Aniston hosts.

B MOVIE «xk Psycho (1960) (CBC Channel 3,

12:30 a.m.) Hitehcock’s creep show often imitated, never
duplicated with Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh. That the:
director was able to make this film within the Hollywood
system is almost as shocking as what you see on the sereen.

B MOVIE #&%& To Die For (1995) (Fox Channel 35,
12:30 a.m.) Gus Van Sant was ill-advised to do the Psycho
remake (why bother?) but in this earlier work he has a lor
more to offer. Nicole Kidman takes chances with her role as
a nasty suburban wife who seduces a teen into killing her
husband (Mact Dillon). Great comic skill taken over the top
with Buck Henry’s script.

SUNDAY

@ FOOTBALL CFL Enstern Final: Hamilton at Montreal
(CBC Channel 3, 9:30 a.m.) Seattle at Kansas City (CBS
Channet 33, 10 a.m.) CFE Western Final: Calgary at B.C.
(CBC Channel 3, 12:30 a.m.)

MOVIE week The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
(KSTW Channel 34, 8 p.m.) Director Jonathan Demme:
and Jodie Foster have both refused to be in the remeke of
this classic shock film. The original won Oscars for best pi
ture, best actress, best actor (Anthony Hopkins), best direc-
tor and bestr adapted screenplay (from Thomas Harris

novel)

MONDAY
Hf MORNING SHOW Today (NBC Channel 32, 7 a m.):
Celine Dion performs.

HOCKEY Vancouver visits Atlanta (Sportsnet C Channel
22, 4:30 Pm. )

a MOVIE kik Wild Reeds (France 1995) (Showcase ;
Channel 24, Midnight) Coming-of-age story set-at a. French

Elect he e
who care.
about the