DALLAS, TX (TIP): Rohena Gera’s feature directorial debut, SIR, wins big at the 5th annual DFW South Asian Film Festival, presented by Toyota, which took place from May 16th to 19th in Dallas, Texas. The opening night feature won for “Best Director” (Rohena Gera), “Best Actor” (Vivek Gomber, in attendance) and “Best Film.”

“The modern-day Indian Cinderella story about the relationship between a maid and her handsome employer clearly struck a chord with our international jury,” said Founder and Festival Director Jitin Hingorani. “We had a feeling this film would do well at our festival, given the recent success of ROMA, as it is such a nuanced portrayal of the classism that is alive and well in the domestic servitude relationships of third world countries.”

This the first year the festival has chosen to appoint a jury and present award. Thus the theme…’Five Years: Five Awards.’

“We wanted to wait until we had international gravitas, so that an award from us actually meant something,” explains Hingorani.

Other winners include:

Best Actress – Kalyanee Mulay for NUDE

Best Short Film – Gaurav Sharma’s THAT MAN IN THE PICTURE (Eros Now)

Audience Favorite: Aijaz Khan’s HAMID, now available on Netflix

Best Child Actor: Sunny Pawar for CHIPPA