Pratibha Parmar
British filmmaker
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Pratibha Parmar is a British writer and filmmaker. She makes feminist documentaries such as Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth (2014) and My Name Is Andrea (2022).
Pratibha Parmar | |
|---|---|
| Born | Nairobi, Kenya |
| Alma mater | University of Birmingham |
| Occupations | Writer and filmmaker |
| Notable work | Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth (2014); My Name Is Andrea (2022) |
| Website | pratibhaparmar |
Early life and education
Parmar was born in Nairobi, Kenya, to Indian parents; when she was 11 years old her family moved to the United Kingdom.[1] She received a B.A. degree from Bradford University and attended Birmingham University for postgraduate education.[2] Parmar's feminism was influenced by writers such as Angela Davis, June Jordan, Cherríe Moraga, Barbara Smith, Alice Walker, Audre Lorde, and Gloria Anzaldúa.[3]
Career
In her 1991 film Khush, Parmar examined the world of South Asian lesbians and gay men in the United Kingdom and India, using a mix of documentary footage and dramatized scenes.[4]
The documentary Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth (2014) is about the life of author and activist Alice Walker, whom Parmar met in 1991 via June Jordan and Angela Davis.[5] Walker and Parmar also collaborated on Warrior Marks, a documentary about female genital mutilation.[5][6] They then released a book, also entitled Warrior Marks (1993).[7]
In 2022, Parmar released her documentary My Name is Andrea, about feminist writer Andrea Dworkin.[8]
Parmar has also made music videos for Morcheeba, Tori Amos, and Midge Ure.[citation needed]
Awards and recognition
- 1993: Frameline Award[2]
- 1995: Trikone Pink Peacock Award[2]
- 2016: BBC's 100 Women[9]
Khush
- 1991: Frameline Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary Short[2]
- 1992: Créteil International Women's Film Festival Public Prize for Best Foreign Film[2]
Selected works
Film
- Khush (1991)
- A Place of Rage (1991)
- Nina's Heavenly Delights (2006)
- Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth (2014)
- My Name is Andrea (2022)
Books
- Walker, Alice; Parmar, Pratibha (1993). Warrior Marks: Female Genital Mutilation and the Sexual Blinding of Women. New York: Harcourt Brace. ISBN 978-0-15-100061-6.
- Gever, Martha; Parmar, Pratibha; Greyson, John, eds. (1993). Queer Looks: An Anthology of Writings about Lesbian and Gay Media. Hoboken: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-90742-2.
Articles and book chapters
- Amos, Valerie; Parmar, Pratibha (1984). "Challenging Imperial Feminism". Feminist Review (17). doi:10.2307/1395006.
- Blackman, Inge; McIntosh, Mary; O'Sullivan, Sue; Parmar, Pratibha; Read, Alison (March 1990). "Perverse Politics". Feminist Review. 34 (1). doi:10.1057/fr.1990.1.
- Parmar, Pratibha (2008). "Pocket Sized Venus". In Volcano, Del LaGrace; Dahl, Ulrika (eds.). Femmes of Power: Exploding Queer Femininities. London: Serpent's Tail. ISBN 978-1-84668-664-1.