In an exciting new venture into the development of international acting talent, the prestigious Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, home of Strasberg's trademarked "Method" acting training process, has announced a partnership with Optimus Management Group, of Hartford, Connecticut, to open the first Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute India, home of the burgeoning "Bollywood" film industry. The partners plan to open Strasberg Institute India in two locations, Mumbai and Hyderabad, by early 2010.

Founder and CEO of Optimus Management Group, Ahmed A. Ahsan, and esteemed Bollywood director Rahuul Rawail have formed an exclusive partnership to operate the Lee Strasberg Institute in India.  In a contract signed today with co-founder Anna Strasberg and CEO David Lee Strasberg, they have entered into an agreement to develop the first Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute India which will offer students the only sanctioned "Method" training facility outside of the US. Currently, there are two Strasberg Theater and Film Institutes operating in this country; at their headquarters in New York City and in Los Angeles. The Strasberg Institute India will be run by veteran Bollywood Director Rahuul Rawail who has more than 30 films to his credit including some of the biggest blockbusters of the Indian cinema.  Mr. Rawail is also keenly interested in the development of young talent. As CEO of the Institute in India, Mr. Rawail hopes to offer the next generation of talented Indian actors the chance to compete globally as the country continues to export more of its films and its stars to the international market.

Strasberg Institute India's co-founder, Ahmed A. Ahsan, has grown the Optimus Management Group in Hartford, Connecticut into an award-winning company which provides management consulting and human resource solutions throughout the country.  Mr. Ahsan was inspired by recent growth in the Bollywood film industry and decided to apply his business acumen to the development of a top-notch Acting School in India so that interested and talented young actors who couldn't afford the expense of studying abroad could take advantage of the best actors' training available.  He also envisions the long-term potential for attracting a stream of production opportunities to Connecticut and North America. The development of the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute India is the first step in that direction.

Lee Strasberg developed an early interest in the ground-breaking work of Russian actor/director Konstantin Stanislavski whose so-called "System" compelled actors to delve deeply into emotional memories in order to bring a higher level of reality to their performances.  This revolutionary training theory captivated Strasberg who joined the fledgling Actor's Studio in New York in 1948.  There he quickly rose to prominence, developing his famed "Method" acting technique which took the Stanislavski ideals to the next level.  Strasberg became Artistic Director of the Actor's Studio in 1951, and retained that post until his death in 1982. He inspired and trained some of the greatest talents to emerge on the screen including James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Al Pacino, Robert Deniro and his training model continues to inspire some of today's biggest stars including Julia Roberts, Uma Thurman and Scarlet Johannson.  Strasberg and his wife Anna Strasberg co-founded the pioneering Lee Strasberg Theater Institute in 1969. Their son, David Lee Strasberg, is CEO of the Strasberg Institute, and continues to carry on the legacy forged so many years ago by his father. 

At the event David Strasberg expressed his excitement at the Institute opening up in India, and also said that now the Strasberg "Method" of training actors would be available closer home to India and the SAARC countries. He also said "that as of now the Strasberg family has been extended to include 2 more members Ahmed Ahsan and Rahuul Rawail"

Rahuul Rawail informed the gathering that faculty in India had already been identified and approved by David Strasberg. The India Faculty members would soon be visiting New York to be trained in the "METHOD" established by Lee Strasberg.

With the opening of the only International branch, in India, The Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute at all three locations would work in tandem with each other providing a wider option for prospective actors.

The Indian Operation will be launched in the first quarter of January and Anna Strasberg would like to have the alumni of the school, from USA and India, come together for the launch of the Indian operation which would also serve as a reunion for the alumni.