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8th South Asian Film Festival: Sri Lankan documentary wins Satyajit Ray Bronze Award
8th South Asian Film Festival: Sri Lankan documentary wins Satyajit Ray Bronze Award

Time of India

time14-07-2025

  • Entertainment
  • Time of India

8th South Asian Film Festival: Sri Lankan documentary wins Satyajit Ray Bronze Award

KOLKATA: A documentary on land disputes including displacement of Adivasis has won the Satyajit Ray Bronze Award (Documentary) at the 8th South Asian Film Festival. Through the feminine gaze of a director and 11 women, it highlights the issue of agricultural land disputes. Though set against the backdrop of the Gal Oya project—Sri Lanka's first major resettlement and agricultural scheme – many viewers have found deep resonances of the subject in Bengal while watching the film about the consequences of resettlement and agricultural scheme. The Gal Oya project involved developing the Gal Oya valley, primarily through constructing the Senanayake Samudraya reservoir and establishing the Gal Oya National Park. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata Rather than employing conventional talking-head interviews, Anomaa Rajakaruna's 'No More Land' uses the voiceover of these women of all ethnicities while the camera pans across the land. In the process, it reveals how a project designed to boost agricultural production has instead generated ethnic tensions and displaced indigenous populations, leaving them without valid documentation to claim the land they once called home. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like You Can Make Massive Side Income By Learning Order Flow Analysis TradeWise Learn More Undo Ampara, an administrative district in Sri Lanka, was established in 1961 as a direct outcome of the Gal Oya project. The district was formed to host an influx of settlers from across the country, and to manage the rapid infrastructure development driven by the project. 'Over the last seven and a half decades, generations of these settlers belonging to all ethnicities, have shared the land with its original inhabitants, the indigenous Adivasi community. Together they have lived through testing circumstances which have shaped and strained their relationship with the land. 'No More Land' tells their story of displacement, of conflict and fear, of claim to land or lack thereof, through the voices of 11 women,' Rajakaruna said. All the interviews were done in a period of six months of 2024. The use of women-only voices has been a conscious call for the director. 'When it comes to ownership of land issues, it is men who talk about the topic. In the context of Ampara, we have listened to a lot of men. I wanted to listen to what women have gone through,' she said. Yet, footage of the 11 interviewed women has not been used the way most documentaries do where the camera only features on their face while the character shares her view. 'When you lip-sync a person's voice, the person talks for himself or herself. When it came to the land disputes of Ampara district, I noticed a lot of similar stories from every corner of the district. I wanted to bring in the voices of all the people who have gone through similar situations into this documentary. That's why I used the deconstruction editing method to bring out the voices and make it into a common narrative of the people of Ampara,' she added. The director isn't surprised that her film has found deep resonances in Bengal. 'My film is especially important in Kolkata since Bengal also has a history of land disputes over what constitutes development,' she said.

Film on interplay of forbidden love & politics in Jangal Mahal in race at fest
Film on interplay of forbidden love & politics in Jangal Mahal in race at fest

Time of India

time12-07-2025

  • Entertainment
  • Time of India

Film on interplay of forbidden love & politics in Jangal Mahal in race at fest

1 2 Kolkata: 'My Comrade', a short film competing at the 8th South Asian Film Festival, is the only entry, which is set against the backdrop of armed rebellion in Jangal Mahal. The film explores a tribal youth's forbidden love, sexual awakening and solidarity for a wounded armed rebel and the choice a woman has to make after cops appeal to reveal the activist's identity in exchange for money. Cinema from Bengal has seen sporadic attempts at exploring the armed-rebellion theme. But this is perhaps the first time a director has woven themes of sexual awakening and gender fluidity in such a backdrop. Tathagata Ghosh's 25-minute fiction film, featuring Sounak Kundu, Aratrick Bhadra and Adrija Majumder, showcases cinematography by Tuhin Saha, background music by Nabarun Bose, editing and grading by Amir Mondal, sound design by Sugoto Basu and mixing by Anindit Roy. You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata Ghosh spent the past two years in the forested lands of Bengal, where armed conflict unfolded in the early 2000s. "I spoke with many tribal people who had lived through the rebellion. What struck me most was how their personal desires and choices often took a back seat to the sheer struggle for survival. Who they loved and how they saw themselves were often overshadowed by the politics of resistance and control," he said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Why seniors are rushing to get this Internet box – here's why! Techno Mag Learn More Undo Inspired, Ghosh placed a character, navigating gender fluidity in a volatile space. "It exposed how politics tries to box identities and how liberation can mean different things for different people. For some, freedom is about land, justice or power. For others, it's the ability to live in one's skin without fear," he added. What adds layers is the emotion of the woman romantically inclined towards the tribal youth. The director intentionally keeps viewers guessing if she is his spouse or love interest. The interpretation of her final choice varies, depending on her place in his life. The spouse of a bisexual man, who has a sexual awakening, might have a different reaction from someone, romantically inclined towards a man only to confront his homosexual identity. "I wanted to portray her quiet emotional storm. Her desire, confusion and hurt exist with a deep sense of helplessness and empathy. For me, the woman represents the emotional cost of love in uncertain times, where nothing, not even identity, is fixed. Writing her character meant holding space for someone who doesn't get clear answers, but still has to make a choice," the director said.

Scientist Who Runs at Night: Film on dreamer-innovator at S Asia fest
Scientist Who Runs at Night: Film on dreamer-innovator at S Asia fest

Time of India

time10-07-2025

  • Health
  • Time of India

Scientist Who Runs at Night: Film on dreamer-innovator at S Asia fest

Kolkata: Padma Shri Sujoy Kumar Guha was an electrical engineer who developed RISUG, the world's only reversible male contraceptive drug. But Indian Council of Medical Research turned down his plea to conduct clinical trials for a drug, developed by a person without a medical degree. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Undaunted, Guha taught at the IIT at 7 am, then attended medical school at University College of Medical Sciences at 8 am. 'The Scientist Who Runs at Night'—a documentary exploring the life of this octogenarian — is one of the most compelling entries competing at the 8th South Asian Film Festival. Guha's achievements have been widely documented about how he developed the one-time, minimally invasive injection with negligible side effects that is effective up to 15 years. "Despite successful clinical trials on more than 2,000 humans, he still faces challenges. He's up against the international pharma lobby and the $30 billion contraceptive market. He is now guiding the RISUG project through the last bureaucratic hurdles but will he realize his dream and obtain final approval and a licence to manufacture the drug for the global market? But Guha refuses to give up. Every night, he goes for a jog to clear his mind," said director Mithun Pramanik. What sets this film apart from many others is its avoidance of becoming an extensive series of scientific lectures, which may have risked alienating average viewers. "A challenge of making a documentary on such a personality is the abundance of interview footage. Having been interviewed multiple times, Guha anticipates the questions and delivers almost identical answers in most interviews. I requested Mithun to film him in his personal space with his family backstory from Patna and his daily conversations with his wife, rather than just within the confines of labs and lecture rooms. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now I was willing to accept even 'NG (no good)' shots without proper lighting and lapel mics, knowing it would reveal various dimensions largely overlooked in his other documentation," said editor Saikat Sekhareswar Ray. The film offers a glimpse into the role of a spouse, who adapts to the quirks of supporting a scientist husband, who transforms one room of his home into a lab, the loneliness of an ageing couple, their children being away abroad, and the composure of receiving a call from the PMO about the Padma award while calmly continuing a meal. What finally emerged is a balance of Guha's professional and personal lives making the film cinematic without sacrificing its essential character.

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