Bombay Calling

John Sekerka's article in the Ottawa Xpress was the first I'd heard about Bombay Calling, an NFB production about telemarketing in India, along with its related opportunities and consequences. Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal, writers and directors, are the same two guys who brought us Discordia.
Sekerka hooked me from his first lines: Ever wonder who's on the other end of the line trying to sell you the latest whatever? It may be Charles, a gregarious devout Catholic with a brilliant smile, numerous girlfriends on the go, who just happens to be pitching from across the Atlantic. ... ...In the film Bombay is portrayed as a volcanic melting pot of millionaires and beggars, of Bollywood frivolity and deeply rooted religious traditions, and nowhere is the dichotomy more evident than with the free spirited youth and their separation from the old ways. They eagerly man the mics, treat every sale as an Olympic event, and celebrate raucously in their rock 'n' roll cubicle room. This isn't the doom and gloom most would expect behind the drudgery of phone solicitations.
The film was released on DVD August 22, and we can only hope for a screening in Ottawa, and soon...I'm hearing things about early October.