🪷🎬 Join Us on August 19 at Rialto Cinemas Elmwood for Cinema as Prayer: A Night of Queer South Asian Films

EBMC is excited to be a community partner for Cinema as Prayer: A Night of Queer South Asian Films, taking place Wednesday, August 19 at Rialto Cinemas Elmwood in Berkeley. This special film program features PARAMITA by Kirthi Nath and Longing Suite by Lata Mani and Nicolás Grandi—two poetic films that move through longing, belonging and spiritual transformation.

PARAMITA bears witness to Prajna Choudhury’s 25-year journey of coming out to her traditional Bangladeshi mother. Told with intimacy and tenderness, the film invites us into a meditative experience as Prajna connects with Buddhist practice and nature as gateways for intergenerational healing.

Longing Suite is a lyrical exploration of awakening to the feminine Divine. Building on a cycle of poems written by Mani in the 1990s, the film traces the arc of a heart-mind-body awakening to the sacred in all that exists.
Together, these intimate, spiritual films invite us to experience cinema as prayer.

The screening will be followed by a conversation and Q&A with the filmmakers, moderated by Madeleine Lim, Executive and Artistic Director of QWOCMAP (Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project).

We hope you can join us—get your tickets today!

Cinema as Prayer: A Night of Queer South Asian Films
🗓 Wednesday, August 19, 2026
⏰ 6:15 PM
📍 Rialto Cinemas Elmwood, 2966 College Avenue, Berkeley
♿ ADA-accessible theatre
🎟 Tickets + more info: https://rialtocinemas.com/coming-soon-elm/cinema-as-prayer-elm