Joyoti

“Find your father.” That was her mother’s dying wish. Despite her grief, twenty-two-year-old Maya sets out on a quest that takes her from sunny California to the busy, smoggy streets of Kolkata, India, to unfold events that took place six decades ago.

In 1940s pre-independent India, Chandana is a scrappy teenager brought up by the kindness of her relatives. Amid a country dominated by foreign rule and a budding revolution, she must abandon the simple pleasures of childhood with her best friend Saira, picking up odd jobs to supplement her family’s meager income.

Courageous and driven, Joyoti cares only about two things: food for her family and freedom for her country. Spying on the British Commandant while working as a hostess allows her to fulfill both her needs. But the famine ravaging Bengal and her ill-fated attraction to a British Captain force her to walk a dangerous path.

Spanning 1940s India and 2000s California, Joyoti is a saga about three headstrong women whose lives intertwine through loyalty, love, and sacrifice.