Ravi Srinivasan, senior TIFF programmer and 'champion for filmmakers', dies suddenly at 37
Ravi Srinivasan, senior TIFF programmer and 'champion for filmmakers', dies suddenly at 37
Ravi Srinivasan, a senior TIFF programmer, died suddenly at age 37.
Ravi Srinivasan, senior manager of festival programming for the Toronto International Film Festival, has died suddenly at age 37.
“We are saddened and shocked to learn of the sudden passing of our colleague and friend Ravi Srinivasan,” Cameron Bailey, chief executive of TIFF, said in a statement on Sunday.
“As a programmer, champion for filmmakers, and director of his own hometown film festival in Sarnia, Ravi was known to many for his passion, his generosity and the joy he brought to cinema.”
In his work, Srinivasan drew on his Filipino and Indian immigrant heritage, Bailey said. “It was built into how he viewed films, and how he invited all audiences to engage with the stories on screen that moved them.”
We are saddened and shocked to learn of the sudden passing of our colleague and friend Ravi Srinivasan. pic.twitter.com/fUCDFmm2Dj
Srinivasan joined TIFF’s programming team in 2013. His most recent role focused on feature films from South Asia, the Philippines and Canada. Before TIFF, Srinivasan was an international programmer at Hot Docs, the founder and executive director of the South Western International Film Festival (SWIFF), and senior programmer of National Canadian Film Day.
He studied film and English literature at Wilfrid Laurier University along with film production at Sheridan College.
We are shocked and saddened by the tragic passing of our Founder & Executive Director, Ravi Srinivasan. We offer our condolences and join in mourning with his family, friends, and the communities he touched.
“When he’s not watching 300 films a year, Ravi spends his time rooting for the Toronto Raptors and Blue Jays, listening to Sharon Van Etten and Big Thief, and being a father to his Bernese Mountain dog, Joni,” his bio reads.
In a tribute to Srinivasan, SWIFF – the festival he “singlehandedly” founded in 2015 – commemorated his tireless work to bring films and music he loved to Sarnia.
“It was a dream of his to create a hometown film festival that would offer cultural exposure, experiences, and opportunities that he had wished he had when he was young,” the organization said in a statement.
“Ravi’s life was all about sharing his love and what he loved with everyone in his orbit. He brought people and communities together, elevated them with his spirit, and helped to make other’s dreams come true.”
To cover funeral costs, a GoFundMe has been created in Srinivasan’s honour. In just two days, more than $81,000 has been raised.
“Ravi was an amazing young man who lived his life to the fullest. His smile was infectious and his laugh could fill any room. Words can't describe the pain his brother Hari and his family are feeling right now. Let's stand behind him and help in any way possible,” GoFundMe organizer Dave Hunt wrote.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Ottawa Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the residence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's national security adviser, the second such incident involving one of his top aides in recent months.
This Sunday, NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will announce the four astronauts that will be blasting off to fly around the moon for the Artemis II mission, one of whom will be a Canadian astronaut.
Gwyneth Paltrow won her court battle over a 2016 ski collision at a posh Utah ski resort after a jury decided Thursday that the movie star wasn't at fault for the crash.
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
Just a week after Airbnb tightened regulations for Quebec listings following a deadly fire, hosts may already be bending the rules. Airbnb now requires its hosts to provide a six-digit policy number with their listing, obtained when a tourist lodging is registered with the provincial government. But a scroll through the Airbnb website suggests users are falsifying their permit numbers to sneak past the authentication process.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
A proposed class-action lawsuit over infamous brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital was before Quebec's highest court Thursday, as victims attempted to remove immunity granted to the United States government.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
When the store manager at La Noisette Bakery arrived Thursday morning to open the small shop on Oxford Street, she discovered that one of the two large circular windows at the side of their building was shattered.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Several communities in northern Ontario are currently under a winter storm watch, with as much as 40 cm of snow expected between now and Saturday night.
Ryan Reynolds spent the day in Ottawa as he continues his efforts to buy the Senators, meeting with officials from the city of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission and attending the Senators game.
Two classes at Roberta Bondar Public School in Ottawa's south end were closed on Thursday due to a lack of teachers, leaving parents and guardians scrambling to make accommodations for their children.
A couple dozen visual artists are coming together this Saturday for an exhibition focused on the oppression of women, curated by a Windsor woman who escaped Iran three years ago.
In response to Alberta ads encouraging Ontario residents to head west — the Municipality of Chatham-Kent has launched a counter campaign reminding local workers how good they have it in Southwestern Ontario.
The jury reached a verdict in the case of Georgian Bay Township man Sigfrid Stahn accused of impaired driving causing death in the 2020 Highway 12 crash that claimed the life of 77-year-old Midland man Guenter Naumann.
Dog kennels are bursting at the seams as pet owners forced to give up their furry friends struggle with risings costs of living. Despite a rise in cat and kitten adoptions, dog adoptions are down by over 50 per cent.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered a brief initial response to the final report from the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) into Canada's worst mass shooting, which claimed the lives of 22 people in Nova Scotia in 2020. Vowing changes will come, here's what Trudeau said in Truro, N.S.
Gun policy comments made by then-RCMP commissioner Brenda Lucki in a contentious call to Nova Scotia RCMP officers after the mass shooting in 2020 did not amount to political interference, the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) final report concludes.
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
Three Calgary men face multiple charges after a police investigation that targeted drug traffickers resulted in the seizure of more than $250,000 in drugs, firearms and various rounds of ammunition, other weapons and drug paraphernalia.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has yet to answer direct questions about a growing scandal of her alleged interference with the justice system, but her deputy premier has responded the media about the issue.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Two Manitoba hunting outfitters have been fined thousands of dollars and lost their licenses after a four-year investigation revealed numerous violations of the wildlife act.
Four of the Vancouver police officers involved in the violent 2015 arrest of Myles Gray – which ended with the 33-year-old dying in handcuffs – claim they were directed by their union not to keep notes about what happened, in violation of department policy.
Mounties are appealing to the public for information related to a mischief investigation involving a statue that was beheaded at a B.C. university earlier this week.
A new program on Vancouver's Downtown Eastside will help connect women to vital primary health care services, eliminating barriers in an attempt to save lives.
After getting off to a slow start, business is booming at Edmonton's Manchester Square. The development in Queen Mary Park opened in March 2020, right as the pandemic began.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has yet to answer direct questions about a growing scandal of her alleged interference with the justice system, but her deputy premier has responded the media about the issue.
Ravi Srinivasan, a senior TIFF programmer, died suddenly at age 37.
