‘The Cycle Of Love’ Brings A Remarkable Indian Love Story To New York

NEW YORK, NY – A documentary about an Indian street artist’s extraordinary bicycle journey from Delhi to Sweden for love premiered in New York, bringing a real-life story of caste, culture and human connection to an American audience.

‘The Cycle of Love’ follows P.K. Mahanandia, a 23-year-old artist born into a poor Dalit family, and Lotta von Schedvin, a 19-year-old Swedish woman who travelled to India in 1977.

The film had its New York red-carpet premiere at the Directors Guild of America Theatre in Manhattan. It was directed by Orlando von Einsiedel, whose credits include ‘The White Helmets,’ ‘Virunga’ and ‘The Lost Children.’

Mahanandia was working as a street artist in Delhi when he met von Schedvin after she asked him to draw her portrait. Their meeting sparked a romance that crossed borders and social barriers.

After von Schedvin returned to Sweden, Mahanandia set out to join her. He travelled about 6,000 miles by bicycle, crossing nearly a dozen countries before reaching Sweden.

The documentary is based on the love story of Mahanandia and von Schedvin, their daughter and producer Emelie Mahanandia von Schedvin said. Rather than offering a detailed account of her father’s life, the director chose to explore the broader meaning of the couple’s journey.

“He wanted to focus on the love story of our parents and meeting other people from different cultures and things on the way, the journey from India to Sweden,” she said.

The production team encountered people from different countries and backgrounds along the route, with many of those unscripted exchanges becoming part of the film.

“Even though you don’t speak the same language, you can always speak the language of heart,” Emelie said. “We’ve maybe come from different religions and things, but we all come from a religion of love.”

Chirag Benedict Lobo plays Mahanandia, while Mina Dale portrays von Schedvin. Lobo said the encounters with people along the journey reinforced the film’s message that love can transcend divisions.

“Everyone else that you see in the film, they’re all real life people sharing their thoughts about life, faith, forgiveness, love, destiny,” he said.

Dale, who is from Norway, travelled to India for the first time for the production. The actors worked without scripted dialogue and filmed in locations where the actual events took place.

“Everything was improvised. There were no lines at all,” she said. “We travelled and we were in the places where the actual events happened.”

Indian actor and producer Priyanka Chopra Jonas is among the film’s executive producers. The documentary comes from the Academy Award-winning team behind ‘The White Helmets,’ ‘Virunga’ and ‘Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl).’ Producers include Emelie and Karl Mahanandia von Schedvin, Harri Grace and Chloe Leland. (IANS)