Pooja Kumar

Pooja Kumar, a former Miss India U.S.A. and Video Disc Jockey for Channel V, is passionate about acting. From among the 40,000 participants in the Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited Talent competition, Pooja was selected as one of the top 10 finalists to be launched into feature films. She has learned various forms of Indian Classical dance since she was 2 years old: Bharatnatyam from her guru Adyar Laxman in Chennai, India, Kathak from Om Prakash Mishra in Allahbad, and Kuchipudi from Sujata Vinjamuri. After attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, she was well prepared for her love: acting. She has acted in four feature films: "Kaadhal Rojave", an international film in Tamil, " Little Magician 3D" (The Little Magician), her most recent film to release in English is called "Flavors" where she received for her role, the Screen Actors Guild Emerging Actor Award. Now she is eagerly awaiting her next film "Night of Henna".

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Craig Marker

Craig Marker is a San Francisco bay area actor. He has performed on stage in many prestigious plays. Craig has played in Continental Divide for Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Love’s Labor Lost for Shakespeare Festival and The Shape of Things for Aurora Theatre . He received Dean Goldman’s Choice Award for his outstanding performance in The Shape of Things.

Craig was thrilled to play lead Justin in Night of Henna. He thinks Bollywood style of filmmaking is very different from American filmmaking but Hassan Zee has done some new experiments and tried to bring in a new style which is very close to the real life. That’s what intrigued him to work in Night of Henna. Craig thinks that the colors and vibrancy in the Pakistani culture and the dresses, jewellery and the ways of talking to each other were just amazing on the sets. He learned to say Salam-alaykum (Peace be with You).

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Suhail Tayeb

Suhail Tayeb lives in the San Francisco Bay Area where he has studied dramatic arts with Full Circle Productions, the American Conservatory Theater and Voice-over with VoiceTrax. His exotic looks and demeanor won him the prestigious title of Mr USA in 2002 (Manhunt International). Suhail has graced the modeling ramp for brands like Calvin Klein, Speedo, Union Bay, Quick Silver, and many others.

Suhail put his modeling career on hold to pursue his dreams to make it on the big screen. While working in independent films, and commercials in the Bay Area came his rendezvous with Phenomenon Films and Night of Henna. Whenever possible, Suhail takes times out from his crazy schedule to indulge in a few of his favorite things; playing pool, swimming, and doing voice overs.

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Reef Karim

Reef can be seen in a variety of feature films, television series, national commercials and music videos. Film credits include: a supporting role in the upcoming film “Lords of Dogtown” with Heath Ledger; a lead role in the Indo-American feature “Flavors” with co-star Anjan Srivastava which was edited by Frank Reynolds (In the Bedroom); a supporting role in the feature film “Laurel Canyon”, starring Francis McDormand and Christian Bale and a supporting role in the upcoming cross-over film “Night of Henna” as well as featured roles in: Deuce Bigalow, Dot.Com and Body Shots.

Reef, in a five episode recurring role, finished shooting a new international TV series “Force of One” with Sean Young, Gary Busey and Eric Roberts; Reef can also be seen displaying various ethnicities and occupations on the soap “Days of our Lives” and he was seen repeatedly as the lead doctor on the very funny “Discover Card” commercial.

Reef is also a professional dancer and he’s danced in a number of films, music videos and popular commercials including: GAP, Dr. Pepper and Breath Remedy commercials;
Raul DiBlasio, Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Toby Keith music videos and he’s performed with Lionel Ritchie, Brian Setzer and Earth, Wind and Fire.

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Hassan Zee

Hassan Zee is a writer, producer, and director with a rich and varied background in the media arts, including radio, television, and film. Though he holds a doctoral degree in medicine, filmmaking, is his preferred medicinal practice. Through his work, Zee has discovered innovative ways of challenging rigid perceptions and prejudices through pioneering and poetic storytelling. At age 13, Zee worked at Radio Pakistan, producing drama and music programs. His television accomplishments include pioneering of cartoon dubbing in his local language, Urdu, and writing and directing dramas for Pakistan television. "The Dim Light", which he directed, was produced by the Ministry of Public and Foreign Affairs, Pakistan.

Zee came to the United States five years ago and began producing the shows "Merijaan Pakistan" and "Voice of Pakistan". "American Masala", which Hassan hosts, is a popular music and talk television show within the Pakistani and Indian community of the San Francisco Bay Area. Zee received a grant to make a short film for emerging producers from Film Arts Foundation, a groundbreaking non-profit that assists Bay Area artists. He wrote, produced, directed, and edited a 14-minute short, "My First Kiss," .The film was screened at the South Asian American Film Festival, and at "Straight Outta FAF" by the San Francisco Film Arts Foundation. Night of Henna is Zee's first feature film. For this feature, Zee was able to draw on diverse talents, from rising star Pooja Kumar, the lead in the film, to the film's cinematographer, three-time Emmy nominee Hiro Narita ( Never Cry Wolf,Hocus Pocus,The Arrival,Honey I shrunk the kids ). Zee's Sound Designer for Night of Henna worked on Lost in Translation and Adaptation. Zee is currently working on the script for his next film, "Strange Feelings".

Zee's work can be found at www.imdb.com

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