From a Community dinner to a 'community' film!

-
In NID, after every big festival there is a community dinner organised, where the dishes of that particular region are served to the whole community. It was the Onam Community dinner in 2010.
I happened to sit next to one of my seniors, Sanaa. The conversation started with pleasantries and moved on to specifics,
"So what is your next project?" asked Sanaa.
I replied, "I am looking for subjects for my documentary. I am confused."
Sanaa thought about for a moment and asked "Have you heard about this 'criminal' theatre group which is based here in Gujarat?"
That sounded very new: ' a criminal theatre group'. The subject sounded very interesting because I knew very little about it. This conversation at the community dinner started the process...
I looked it up on the internet...I came in contact with people working on this issue. Then I visited the community in Chharanagar. The tribe is called 'Chhara' and the group is called 'Budhan theatre. I made good friends there.
 For the next 6 months I kept visiting them on weekends and 'Budhan Diaries' was the final product which came out. It's a 24-minute documentary which I am sharing with this post.

So, from that one random conversation at the community dinner at NID, it went on to become a community's film! Thanks Sanaa :)

('Budhan Diaries' has been screened at the Jeevika Documentary film festival-2011, Delhi, Cine Fresco International Film Festival-2011, Kolkata, Madurai International Film festival-2011, Madurai, Infocus Film fest-2012, Loyola Hyderabad and Mumbai International Film Festival-2012. The film also got picked by the video channel 'India Docs' on youtube. It won the 'Special Jury mention ' Award at Jeevika.)
Watch it...



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The TEA garden visit!

-
Image
Priyanka Vadra in a tea Garden in Assam  8:08 pm, Jorhat First of all, I am really sorry for not posting my blog this Sunday. I have been busy buying, setting my new house here. But meanwhile, I along with my wife took a short trip in the city, to the world famous tea gardens. I had always seen them in movies or television. In fact, recently I saw an image of Priyanka Vadra visiting a tea garden (image). Jorhat is not huge city, but it is a town of a good size, where all the points of my motive, have been just around 15 to 20 minutes. That is the size of the town.  We have recently bought a two-wheeler and it has come as a boon to travel across the city. We have bought a sky-blue coloured Vespa (Pic) and we are loving taking random trips on it. Our new Vespa. The Estate Entrance So this Sunday morning, we got ready and left for Cinnamara tea estate, Jorhat. It was established in the year 1850, by the British East India company. The land was owned by Maniram Dewam, who later to...
Read more

Memories of my 'Chhote Mama'!

-
Image
Hyderabad,  August, 2020. When he was born, he was the younger brother. So, his parents named him 'Chhote'. Even his younger siblings called him 'Chhote' bhaiyya (younger brother). My chhote mama recently passed away because of Covid. It is painful, because it happened very soon, and from a man who was walking freely, to a straight pan dead body! I don't want to cry now, because I have admired my Chhote mama's (uncle) positive patience, always from a very young age. It is one feature of his personality which I had admired.  I am sharing some of the memories, which I have cherished all my life, some memories, which are pretty clearly imprinted on my mind, some time I had spent with him alone. Let us begin: MEMORY-1 Secunderabad, 1994 I was little! My mama had come to our place in Trishul Line, Secunderabad. These are some very clear visual memories of Trishul line. Our house was on the ground floor. He had come home.  He asked me, "Do you sleep outside?...
Read more

"Yes, Affirmative!"

-
The morning with that soothing sunrise, good enough to bid the sleepy eyes goodbye, asks me a simple question, 'are you ready for the war?' I get up and answer, 'yes, affirmative'! Morning laughs and says, "ARE YOU SURE?" I make up my mind and start the day. That distant college through a bike ride, those colleagues with shaky hugs and kisses. That subject which i don't like, that teacher with a frown set right. I ask myself, "Are you sure?" The noon with the sun overhead, trying to push me back to those sleepy eyes. The labs with that stunned darkness, ask me the question again, "Are you sure?" i think again and i search for the answer deep inside, it is still, 'yes, AFFIRMATIVE!' i lie down on the bed those questions again, the words 'affirmative' and 'yes' ask me again, "Are you sure?" i don't say a thing, i close my eyes and look back at those bike rides to college, those shaky hugs and kisses, ...
Read more