Artist Profile: Yasmin Virani
 1. Name: Yasmin Virani 2. Age: 30 3. Ethnicity: South Asian 4. Occupation and/or Company: Actor - Writer - Director 5. Years of experience: I’ve been performing ever since I was nine! 6. Next Performance: Right now, I’m on tour with my new play, ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness). “In this semi-autobiographical, one woman show; Yasmin Virani tells us her story of intimacy, vulnerability, and sexual self-discovery.” Check out my website for a show near you! 7.What is the highlight of your performance? The story. It’s a very real story of a young woman trying to figure herself and her artistry out. For some art is luxury, for others, a necessity. I mean, the play is ultimately a love story, but juxtaposing this are ideas of friendship, loyalty, and emotional survival. 8. Future goals as an Artist: Well, ANAND, has been an extremely gratifying experience for me as an Artist. To have people laugh with me, cry with me, essentially live my experiences with me , has been quite extraordinary. If I can continue to inspire and be inspired - that’s my goal; to experience more of myself and share my humanity with others.
Indo-Canadian Actress, Yasmin Virani, Welcomes Olympic Athletes
 (Vancouver, BC) Haute Couture Theatre Company presents ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness), written by veteran actress and seasoned director, Yasmin Virani. Filled with music and laughter, this cross - cultural play is a coming of age story recounting a young woman’s personal journey into womanhood and how moving forward in an often cruel and harsh world can sometimes be challenging, but achievable. A positive message for the youth, the company has decided to bring back the widely successful play during this year’s winter Olympics, being held in Vancouver, Canada. “It’s a time of great pride for our country. What makes Canada so unique, I think, is our diversity and these athletes are an inspiration to us all,” said Ms. Virani. Yasmin herself, was born and raised in Canada, but her parents were refugees from Uganda. They migrated to Canada during the South Asian expulsion under the Idi Amin regime, in 1972. Her family lost everything in transition. “My family came to this country with nothing but the clothes that they were wearing. That’s the reality of displaced families and the fact of the matter is that if you look at the statistics of abusive families, or uneducated families, and by this I mean parents who haven’t had the opportunity or the good fortune of seeking higher education; you realize how quickly the odds are set against their children. In order to rise above poverty or break the cycle of abuse, you have to see a better version of yourself, but how do you that in the world we live in?” A recent graduate in the field of Social Work, Yasmin is a supporter of the 2010 Olympics. “I think it’s important for the youth of today to see positive role models and these athletes are the real deal. These are everyday people who happen to be good at something, so they work hard, they train, they discipline themselves, and they believe that everyday they can get better. Whether you are an athlete or an actor, when you have dream in this life, you have to believe in yourself and figure out a way to move forward.” ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness) plays at the YWCA Vancouver on Sunday, February 28th at 12:00 PM, for one day only. Tickets are $20.00 and include a gourmet Indian lunch (see website for details). Please visit: http://www.yasminvirani.com or call the Haute Couture Box Office at: 1+ 604 351 - 9230. See Twitter/Facebook for updates about the show.
Standout Play Anand Back In Vancouver
 (Vancouver, BC) After being coined, “Brilliant” in Los Angeles, Haute Couture Theatre Company is bringing back the wildly successful play, ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness), written by veteran actress and seasoned director, Yasmin Virani. Filled with music and laughter, this cross - cultural play is a coming of age story recounting a young woman’s personal journey into womanhood and how moving forward in an often cruel and harsh world can sometimes be challenging, but achievable. A positive message for the youth, Haute Couture Theatre Company is delighted to present ANAND during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness) plays at the YWCA Vancouver on Sunday, February 28th at 12:00 pm, for one day only. Tickets are $20.00 and includes a gourmet Indian lunch (see website for details). For more information visit: http://www.yasminvirani.com/ or call the Haute Couture Box Office at: 1+ 604 - 351 - 9230 for more information. See Twitter/Facebook for updates about the show.
Radio Canada International: The Link
Canadian Actress,Yasmin Virani, Brings Bollywood to Hollywood!
 1. What is your, "Khoobsurti ka raaz (beauty secret)?" My sense of humor. 2. Tell us something that most people don’t know about you? I am actually very shy by nature. 3. What is the one thing that you cannot live without? My laptop! It's the only thing that I go to bed with at night! 4. Are you single and if so why? I am. I was in a long term relationship for several years and after that I met some interesting people, but no one that I was ready to commit to. 5. And as your new play suggests now you’re, “ready?” Yes. It’s been a long process, but I’m slowly opening that door. 6. What are you looking for in a man? A spiritual connection. 7. Interesting, since you mention religion in your play as well. How important is that to you? In my opinion, religion has nothing to do with spirituality. 8. Okay, well let me ask you this then, would you marry someone who doesn't define himself as being Muslim? Absolutely, if I loved him, but I would expect him to respect my religion as I would his. 9. Describe your perfect man? Someone whom I admire. Someone who makes me a better woman and whom I can make a better man. 10. Are looks important? No, but attraction is. 11. Describe your perfect date? Maybe a quiet dinner with a long walk afterwards, where we talk about poetry and philosophy. 12. Yasmin Virani who knew you were so boring!?! Shhhh! That’s another secret that people don’t know about me!
Cont'd
 13. You also mention your experience of India in the play. What is the one thing that you love about the country? India is like a lover. You fall in love with both the perfections and imperfections of the country and just like a lover, India waits patiently for you to come back. 14. Is a bollywood movie in the works then? Yes. 15. Can you tell us about it? Actually, I'm quite superstitious about these things. Once everything has been finalized - believe me, I'll be the first one to scream it from the roof tops! 16. Who is you favorite bollywood actor? I am obsessed with SRK (Shah Rukh Khan)! 17. Who is your favorite bollywood actress? It’s funny, because my mother loves Meena Kumari, and the movie Pakeezah has always had a very strong influence in my life, but personally, I am in love with Rekha Ji. 18. Do you speak Hindi? Yes, I have always admired Urdu poetry, so learning Hindi was actually very easy for me. 19. Who is your favorite poet? Mr. Javed Akhter. His writing inspires me. 20. What is the one thing that annoys you most about your profession? Well, I’ve always had to defend myself against the perception that others have had of me, which can be both hurtful and exhausting, but I've come to terms with this by realizing that anyone whom I have to constantly explain or justify myself to, just isn’t worth my time. 21. Speaking of time, and you don't have to answer this if you don't want to, but is Anand the reason why you are still single? I’d be lying if I said no, but I also think that I just needed some time to figure out what I truly wanted out of life and for a while I wasn’t sure if marriage was it for me. 22. And now you are? Yes, now I am, because my concept of love has evolved. I have always believed that love is not about taking - it’s about giving, but for the past several years I felt as though I had nothing to give. Now I realize there is so much that I have yet to experience and express and wish to share those aspects of myself with another - someone who I am worthy of and who is worthy of me. 23. A little regressive don’t you think? I won’t deny that I am a little old fashioned, but I don’t think marriage is regressive. In fact, I think it can be a beautiful union between two people. But yes, I think being someone’s life partner is a very big responsibility, so in my opinion there needs to be a very clear understanding of who two people are as human beings. 24. Finally, tell us about ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness). Well, to begin with, ANAND is a bollywood love story, so of course it’s about two best friends falling in love (LOL)! But the play is also semi-autobiographical. So it’s about my own personal journey of growing up and how the choices we make in life influence who we become. ANAND (bliss, peace, happiness) plays Friday, February 12th, at The Second City Studio Theatre, 6560 Hollywood Blvd. (2nd Floor), Hollywood & Whitley Ave. @ 9:30 PM.
StarBuzz: The No.1 CINE Weekly
 Yasmin is on the cover with the sexy, Salman Khan, in in the January edition of StarBuzz - the hottest Bollywood News Weekly in Toronto (read interview below)!
|
|
1. Name: Yasmin Virani
