Another Ali is born: Imtiaz’s daughter Ida makes her mark

The reactions “have been overwhelming”, says 17year-old Ida Ali, who recently released her short film, Lift. Like a web-savvy, 21st century teenager, the daughter of filmmaker Imtiaz Ali released the film on YouTube; it has got more than 3.4 million views until now. What’s more, the film has been shortlisted for an award.

It’s all too new for the youngster. Ida says, “I was 16 when I made the film. I just turned 17. I shot it in two days from 7am to 11pm and then it took me about two weeks to dub and edit it. Honestly, I expected my parents to watch it, maybe [also] a few family members and friends... I didn’t think a million people would watch it. Getting shortlisted for an award was even more

I don’t think I was influenced by [my father’s work. I watch his movies, I like them and we talk about it. But it was never like I took anything from him IDA ALI FILMMAKER

shocking. I didn’t imagine that my film would make it to the 56 shortlisted films out of 2,000.”

Lift offers a mature take on relationships. Imtiaz is known for exploring the romance genre, but Ida says that she didn’t take any help from him. “I have a lift in my building and I noticed people, and I realised how much you can know about someone without even talking to them. And that’s how this idea struck me,” she says. While the film is entirely her own, Ida says that because she and her father are “in the same atmosphere, often”, their ways of thinking may have been similar.

Her parents, Preety and Imtiaz, are impressed with her effort, and, says Ida, “that wasn’t just because I was their kid; they actually thought it was a good film”.

PHOTO: AALOK SONI/HT Ida Ali, 17, plans to become a trained filmmaker

PHOTO: RAJ K RAJ/HT Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali