Writer/Director - Swati Srivastava
With her background in social/political docs and moving narratives with a social message, Swati Srivastava is an award winning film-maker and a 1st generation immigrant in USA. Swati arrived in US as a software engineer with dreams of becoming a film-maker, she then earned two specializations (with distinctions) at UCLA Extn. Film Program while maintaining a full time job in Software. Swati’s recent documentary work regarding farmer suicides in India was aired at prime-time on CNN-India where it was watched by millions of viewers and was subsequently given the “most important story of the year” award. The last two short films she wrote & directed; “Remember When” (an emotional drama about Alzheimer’s) and “Peace of Mind Guaranteed” (an Indian comedy/ satire about DNA paternity testing) are currently on the festival circuit and have been shown at about a dozen film festivals and won many awards. Swati recently created a video collage called "Daughters of Venus" for "UN Women - LA Chapter". She regularly shoots & directs “Behind The Scenes” on other films, has written several screenplays and recently published a sci-fi book called “The Ninth Planet”.
Swati has had a long journey fraught with struggles, many of them simply because of being a woman. She can’t wait to direct the moving narrative of INFIDEL, with its hard-hitting messages of women empowerment, solidarity with artists, and breaking stereotypes.
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Lead Actress "Aisha" - Sitara Attaie
Sitara Attaie is a versatile Hollywood actress, who was born in Afghanistan but grew up in The Netherlands. She discovered her passion for acting, movies, and dancing at a young age. Sitara Attaie received her BFA in English Literature and Theater from the Rijks-University in Groningen, and has been formally trained at the world-renowned Lee Strasberg Theater and Film Institute in Hollywood and The Actor's Workshop. As an actress and voice-over artist, Sitara Attaie has worked on major productions such as Showtime's Homeland, Argo, RED 2, The Fault In Our Stars, and popular television shows such as True Blood, NCIS, Bones, and Nikita. She has done several Indie movies, commercials, and music videos. Sitara’s proficiency in 5 different languages brought her many hosting gigs for live and television shows. She is a Dutch television personality who partook in projects on Dutch television like, VARA's 12X12, TROS's Kunstbende, SBS6's Missen etc. She has been part of the promoter's team of European shows of Bollywood megastars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, John Abraham and Priyanka Chopra. Sitara has choreographed commercials, music videos, and Bollywood movie songs. She has also won beauty pageants in The Netherlands and Turkey, and is a fashion and runway model.
Sitara’s family personally suffered when they were forced to escape Afghanistan. Even though her own dreams of becoming a dancer/ actress were nurtured by her family, Sitara identifies strongly with the women who are not so fortunate. Sitara brought the original story idea for the short film INFIDEL to Director Swati Srivastava.
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Supporting Actor "Rafiq" - Fahim Fazli
Fahim Fazli is a man of two worlds: Afghanistan, the country of his birth, and America, the nation he adopted and learned to love. Fahim escaped oppression, found his dream profession, and then paid it all forward by returning to Afghanistan as an interpreter with the U.S. Marines from 2009-2010. He came to the United States as a refugee in his teens. He enjoyed a privileged childhood until the Russians invaded Afghanistan. As a young adult he supported the resistance and when he and his remaining family saw the opportunity they fled to Pakistan and then eventually to the United States. Fahim moved to California with dreams of an acting career. He has since amassed about 40 credits that include working on both academy award winning films and blockbusters. He is currently working on HORSE SOLDIERS with director Nikolai Fuglsig with cast members Chris Hemsworth and Michael Shannon. Fahim wrote his memoir, Fahim Speaks, that was released in early 2012. "Fahim Speaks" received the 1st place for a biography from the Military Writers Society of America.
Fahim is excited to play Rafiq; Aisha's father and best-friend so he can break character stereotypes. He says the character of "Aisha" reminds him of his own mother; a courageous woman who dreamed big.
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Supporting Actor "Lead Talib" - Yousuf Azami
Yousuf Azami is a Hollywood actor with over 23 credits in top notch Hollywood movies like: Aloha, Lone Survivor (2013), Brothers (2009),Crank (2006), Charlie Wilson's War (2207) and Horse Soldiers (2017) .

Yousuf has been a strong proponent of women and children's rights all his life. Through INFIDEL, he wants to send the message to the extremists who have hijacked Islam that real evil is to kill a young girl's hopes & dreams and even though they continue to brand women Infidels and kill them in the name of religion, those dreams will carry on in the next generation of girls & women.
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Executive Producer/Creative Producer - Mark Bartosik
An English man in USA and the life- partner of Director Swati Srivastava, Mark Bartosik brings many different gifts to a film. Creative producer, always IT Support and sometimes set builder, Mark Bartosik wears multiple hats on a film production. He has co-produced all of Swati's films and documentaries in India and USA. With an honors degree in electronic engineering and Computer Science from the UK, Mark has at various times, designed and built custom hardware & software for use in critical systems ranging from deep-mining equipment to submarines, and from chat systems to trading systems with minimum $1,000,000 trades. Early in his career Mark won various prizes; such as the British young inventor award, his team also won first prize in the British Computer Society national programming competition, while later in his career he published articles in international software journals and received citations. With his hands-on & down to earth approach, Mark helps build complex sets, provides all IT support during and after production and works as the Creative Producer during Production.
Mark's commitment to women's equality is absolute. He was last seen marching for women's rights at the Women's March in Washington DC!
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Co-Producer/ 1st Asst. Director - Brandon Amelotte
With a superlative work-ethic, Brandon brings an unmatched dedication to his projects. He has worked with Director Swati Srivastava on multiple projects. Before the shoot, he helps Swati prepare the budget, create the schedule and bring the crew together. On the set, he is the right-hand man for Swati who fully trusts his experience and advice. Brandon is a graduate of Penn State University where he studied Marketing. After graduation, he spent time in the corporate and government world, working in such businesses as Unisys, Merrill Lynch, and NASA Johnson Space Center. In 2005, he found his calling in film and moved to California. He has since worked as an Assistant Director and Line Producer on over 40 shorts, documentaries and feature films. In addition to his film credits, he has worked on numerous live events and award shows. Credits Include: Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie, Stevie-D, Two Bedrooms and Life just Happened.
Brandon was raised by a single mother and women's rights are close to his heart. Powerful subject matters such as INFIDEL helmed by a Director whose vision he has come to trust, are what Brandon loves about making films.
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