Japanese student in India reflects on her grandfather while filming World War II movie
Mika Sasaki, a 32-year-old Japanese filmmaker studying in India, is creating a World War II-themed short film in the South Asian country, where her late grandfather is believed to have survived one of the fiercest battles during the war.
The movie "Bougainvillea no Yume" ("Bougainvillea Dream") tells the story of a married couple who communicate through letters while separated by war and reunite in a dream.
Sasaki — a native of Sabae, Fukui Prefecture — was inspired by a book by Mayumi Inagaki about "115 love letters" a Fukui woman sent to her husband while he was away at war. Sasaki decided to make the film to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the war, as India, then part of the British Empire, was also a battleground.
The first Japanese student at a national film institute in Kolkata raised the money to cover production costs via crowdfunding, gathered actors from Japan and India, shot the film in February, and is currently doing editing.
She hopes to showcase it at film festivals in Japan and other countries in June or later.
"I wonder how many young people died without seeing their families or loved ones (again)," says Sasaki. "As a new generation, it's meaningful to think about the Japanese who died here and what Japan did to other countries."
Filmmaker Mika Sasaki poses with items left by her late grandfather during an interview in Kolkata, India, on May 18. |
Jiji
Her grandfather, Hisashi, was a member of an infantry regiment of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army that engaged in the Battle of Imphal in northeastern India, considered one of the most reckless campaigns during the war.
Although he sent letters to relatives while in Manchuria, now northeastern China, he did not leave behind any wartime correspondence. He also never talked about the Imphal operation, and he died in 1995 at age 74.
Still, a notebook he kept revealed that many of his fellow soldiers were killed in the battle, suggesting the possibility of Hisashi, himself, having advanced close to a city experiencing hell-like conditions.
"It must have created serious trauma for him," Sasaki said.
Sasaki also said the military conflict between India and Pakistan earlier this month "has changed the weight of the film."
"I don't want to see war," she said. "It's really enough."
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Japanese student in India reflects on her grandfather while filming World War II movie
Mika Sasaki, a 32-year-old Japanese filmmaker studying in India, is creating a World War II-themed short film in the South Asian country, where her late grandfather is believed to have survived one of the fiercest battles during the war. The movie "Bougainvillea no Yume" ("Bougainvillea Dream") tells the story of a married couple who communicate through letters while separated by war and reunite in a dream. Sasaki — a native of Sabae, Fukui Prefecture — was inspired by a book by Mayumi Inagaki about "115 love letters" a Fukui woman sent to her husband while he was away at war. Sasaki decided to make the film to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the war, as India, then part of the British Empire, was also a battleground. The first Japanese student at a national film institute in Kolkata raised the money to cover production costs via crowdfunding, gathered actors from Japan and India, shot the film in February, and is currently doing editing. She hopes to showcase it at film festivals in Japan and other countries in June or later. "I wonder how many young people died without seeing their families or loved ones (again)," says Sasaki. "As a new generation, it's meaningful to think about the Japanese who died here and what Japan did to other countries." Filmmaker Mika Sasaki poses with items left by her late grandfather during an interview in Kolkata, India, on May 18. | Jiji Her grandfather, Hisashi, was a member of an infantry regiment of the now-defunct Imperial Japanese Army that engaged in the Battle of Imphal in northeastern India, considered one of the most reckless campaigns during the war. Although he sent letters to relatives while in Manchuria, now northeastern China, he did not leave behind any wartime correspondence. He also never talked about the Imphal operation, and he died in 1995 at age 74. Still, a notebook he kept revealed that many of his fellow soldiers were killed in the battle, suggesting the possibility of Hisashi, himself, having advanced close to a city experiencing hell-like conditions. "It must have created serious trauma for him," Sasaki said. Sasaki also said the military conflict between India and Pakistan earlier this month "has changed the weight of the film." "I don't want to see war," she said. "It's really enough."
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