As part of the REELway X SACFF Canada/India Co-Production Lab Series, REELway spoke with the Canadian filmmakers participating in this groundbreaking initiative. Through these conversations, the filmmakers share their approaches to storytelling, perspectives on cultural identity and international collaboration, and the projects they are bringing to the lab. In this interview, filmmaker and producer Cyrus Sundar Singh spoke to Armin KS about the power of storytelling to connect audiences across cultures, the importance of creative confidence, and the possibilities of Canadian and Indian filmmakers building stories and markets together. He also discusses his half-hour comedy series ‘Little India’, which explores the lives of an Indo-Canadian family in Toronto’s Little India, and his vision for creating culturally specific stories with universal appeal.
You’ve produced stories across Canada, India and many other parts of the world. What have you learned about what makes a story connect across different cultures and audiences?
My learning is that each of us has a story to share and we await the opportunity to tell it. The sharing of stories connects us across cultures, and the art of the telling connects us across audiences.
You’ve worked across documentary, reality, food and lifestyle programming. How has working across different genres influenced the way you approach storytelling?
The connecting thread across the genres of my storytelling projects is the telling or the farming (visually, aurally, poetically, philosophically) of a good story. I am most influenced by the people telling their stories, which we humans have been doing for millennia.
As a South Asian Canadian filmmaker, how do you balance cultural specificity with making stories accessible to audiences beyond the South Asian community?
As a Canadian Filmmaker, musician, poet, and scholar, I always have and continue to create for an audience writ large – not specific to an ethnicity. On a related note, balancing cultural specificity, identity, and belonging continually permeates all creative decisions.
You’ve worked with broadcasters including CBC, BellMedia, Discovery and Smithsonian. What do you think broadcasters are looking for today when it comes to culturally specific stories?
Broadcasters look for creative telling in the sharing of stories. At this stage, the “how” (creative frame) is more important than the “what” (the story). Broadcasters also look for confidence in the producer(s) leading the project. Similarly, from co-producers to talent to crew, collaborators/partners in the creative trenches are all supported by the confidence of the team leading the project.
Tell us about the project that you will be developing through the lab. What kind of producer are you looking for in a potential co-production?
‘Little India’, a half-hour comedy series that revolves around the exploits and escapades of an Indo-Canadian family in Toronto’s Little India. Ideally, we are looking for a seasoned co-producer who understands that it’s possible to tell a universal story within the specificity of a distinct community. A co-producer who enjoys the process of creation and enables the craft while balancing all details and challenges of the business of the industry. This also means having the savviness to produce a show in Canada that would resonate with global audiences and can be sold to global markets.
You’ve worked internationally for many years. What do you think is possible when Canadian and Indian filmmakers stop seeing their markets as separate and start thinking about what they can build together?
Thinking collaboratively is a game changer that is very exciting to us. The whole is worth more than the sum of the parts. Indian and Canadian producers partnering together can definitely create something new and exciting that can never be created separately. This is an ideal time to work collaboratively.
Quick Takes:
Q. What projects are you currently pitching or developing?
Little India – a half-hour family workplace comedy TV series
Muscle & Hustle – a half-hour workplace comedy TV series
Q. What stage are these projects in (writing, pre-production, post-production)?
Little India: Pilot Script; Series Bible; and outlines for 10 episodes
Q. What kind of collaborators are you looking for right now? (writers, actors, producers, crew, etc.)
Looking for writers with a South Asian sensibility who could be part of a writer’s room;
Likewise, we are looking for directors and an intergenerational cast.
If the Indian co-production works out, we are particularly interested in casting well-known Indian actors who are recognized across the Indian/South Asian diaspora.
Q. How can people get in touch if they want to collaborate or learn more?
cyrusmedia1@gmail.com
Q. Are you looking for submissions, funding, or other opportunities?
We are looking to finance the project and to sell it in the global marketplace.
Q. Any upcoming events, screenings, or launches readers should know about?
October: As part of the Cross Continental Forum, I am attending the Durban Film Mart in Durban, South Africa with a feature documentary project titled: DistrictSix2Africville.
November: The 25th Anniversary celebratory screening of my NFB documentary debut, ‘Film Club’ at the ReelAsian Film Festival, mid-November 2026
