Travelling festival of South Asian documentaries
FSA
Travelling Film South Asia 2006
Film South Asia ’05
The fifth edition of the festival of South Asian documentaries, Film South Asia ’05, was held in Kathmandu from 29 September to 4 October, 2003. Forty-four films were screened, selected from 190 films submitted. The last two days of the festival had a special section of 15 films with the theme “Barrel of the Gun” to highlight the futility of violence for political ends in the context of the insurgency in Nepal.
In addition to the special section the festival was held at a commercial duplex because of the ever-growing popularity of the festival and the response of the Kathmandu audience met our expectations with most of the screenings running to almost full houses in spite of the bigger venue. The popularity of the South Asian documentary is registering a continuous upward swing.
"Revolution in Digital – Go Documentary” was the slogan of FSA ’05 to highlight the possibilities of the new technology and its democratic potential. In line with this idea a new category of award for Best Debut Film was also instituted at this festival. It is the hope of the organisers that more and more young people take up documentary filmmaking as a medium to highlight the issues that concern South Asia – be it political, economic, cultural, lifestyle or anything under the sun.
Travelling Film South Asia ’06
One reason is the existence of Traveling Film South Asia, which has over the last eight years been showcasing the best of the Subcontinent’s non-fiction output in the region and overseas. Because of the high quality of the entries shown at FSA ’05, we are confident that the current TFSA ’06 will help further consolidate the audience as well as market for the South Asian non-fiction film.
The 15 films that are part of this travelling collection were chosen from those screened at FSA ’05 with the help of the festival’s three-member jury, chaired by the Bangladeshi filmmaker Tareque Masud. They include four of the award winners at FSA ’05. These fifteen outstanding films will be travelling all over South Asia and the world, giving audiences far removed from each other an opportunity to sample an exciting range of topics and themes, presentation styles and techniques.
TFSA is a tradition begun with the first Film South Asia festival, held in September 1997, after which 15 outstanding films travelled to 40 venues. The second TFSA, subsequent to FSA '99, traveled to more than 45 venues. Following on FSA 2001, the third TFSA, went to 48 venues and TFSA ’04 with a selection from the fourth edition of the festival went to 51 venues.
We expect TFSA ’06 to travel to many more cities and venues within the countries of South Asia, helping generate understanding and empathy among ourselves. At the same time, the traveling festival’s excursion overseas will provide the critical context required for others to understand us.
The FSA Secretariat encourages organisers and film enthusiasts in towns and cities large and small – all over – to consider hosting TFSA and bringing a taste of this at-once diverse and unifying package of documentaries to audience in South Asia and in the world.
Hosting TFSA
The TFSA package comes with the 15 films in professional-quality Mini-DV tapes (or VHS cassettes or DVDs), TFSA posters, festival catalogues and display material. It is recommended that the TFSA be shown through high-quality video projection systems. The 15 films vary significantly in length and may ideally be screened over three consecutive afternoons-evenings, though a more flexible schedule may certainly be considered. Cumulatively, the 15 documentaries constitute approximately 15 hours of viewing time.
Please note that the festival will only travel to cities where host organisations are willing to take full responsibility for publicity, screenings and all associated logistics. As per FSA's agreement with the individual filmmakers and production houses, the screenings may only be non-commercial. This means that entry fees at TFSA may at best be used to offset screening costs, and nothing more.
The organisers are also asked to display a poster of Himal South Asian magazine, which was co-organiser of FSA ’05 at a prominent spot and make available the magazine subscription slips provided.
Costs
There is no charge levied on hosts and venues within South Asia. Beyond the region, an all-inclusive charge of USD 700 per venue is levied by the FSA Secretariat in order to defray all TFSA-related costs (anything left over will go to the organisation of FSA’07, to be held in September 2007). The local host (whether in South Asia or overseas) takes the responsibility of dispatching the set of films to the next venue as directed by the FSA Secretariat.
Budget allowing, the TFSA host may want to invite the individual filmmakers to their venue. While it is not obligatory, the host may also consider inviting an FSA official from Kathmandu, who will be able to introduce the festival before the local audience and in doing so promote the agenda of non-fiction film in South Asia. Any host seeking the presence of an FSA official will have to pick up the related cost of travel and stay.
List of Films
A Certain Liberation (38 min)
Bangladesh, 2003, dir – Yasmine Kabir
Winner of the Second Best Film Award at FSA ‘05
Gurudasi Mondol resigned herself to madness in 1971 when, during the Liberation War of Bangladesh, she witnessed the murder of her entire family at the hands of the collaborators of the occupying forces. Today Gurudasi continues to roam the streets of Kopilmoni, a small town in rural Bangladesh, in pursuit of all she has lost, taking liberties only her madness and her strength of character afford her. In her beloved home of Kipilmoni, Gurudasi has now attained near legendary status and, through her indomitable presence, she has kept the spirit of the Liberation War alive.
The City Beautiful (78 min)
Delhi/India, 2003, dir-Rahul Roy
Sunder Nagri is a small working class colony on the margins of India’s capital city, Delhi. Most families residing here come from a community of weavers. The last ten years have seen a gradual disintegration of the handloom tradition of this community under the globalisation regime. The families have to cope with change as well as reinvent themselves to eke out a living. The City Beautiful is the story of two such families struggling to make sense of a world which keeps pushing them to the margins.
City of Photos (60 min)
India, 2005 dir – NisthaJain
Special Commendation at FSA ’05
The film explores the little known ethos of old neighborhood photo studios in a variety of Indian cities, discovering entire imaginary worlds in the smallest of spaces. Tiny, shabby studios that appear stuck in a time warp turn out to be throbbing with energy. These afford fascinating glimpses into individual fantasies and popular tastes. Yet beneath the fun and games runs an undercurrent of foreboding.
Continuous Journey (87 min)
India/Canada, 2004, dir – Ali Kazmi
Winner of the Ram Bahadur Trophy for Best Film at FSA ’05
In 1914 the Komagata Maru, a vessel carrying 376 immigrants from British India, became the first ship transporting migrants to be turned away by Canada. During the two-month detention in the harbour, Canadian authorities drove the passengers to the brink of thirst and starvation. The affair exposed the British Empire’s myths of equality, fair play and justice, and became a turning point in the freedom struggle in India. Continuous Journey is a multilayered film essay to unravel a complex and little-known incident.
Dirty Laundry (42 min)
South Africa, 2005, dir – Sanjeev Chaterjee
More than a hundred years after Gandhi left South Africa to pursue a life of Indian nationalist politics, South Africans of Indian origin continue the quest to define themselves and who they are. Dirty Laundry is a travel essay and historical journey that offers a glimpse of this struggle for self-definition and cultural identity in today’s world, from the role of South African Indians as revolutionaries in the anti-apartheid struggle up to the activities of the present.
Final Solution (149 min)
Gujarat/India, 2004, dir – Rakesh Sharma
Winner of Special Jury Award at FSA ’05
Set in Gujarat between early 2002 and July 2003, the film graphically documents the changing face of right-wing politics in western India through an examination of the carnage wrought on Gujarat in 2002. Final Solution is an anti-hate/violence film created with the belief that that “those who forget history are condemned to relive it”.
Girl Song (29 min)
West Bengal/India, 2003, dir – Vasudha Joshi
The film enters the life of Anjum Katyal, blues singer, poet and mother, capturing her voice as she performs the blues in her home city of Kolkata, as she reads her poems and journal entries aloud to her daughter, and as she converses with her mother of the cultural heritage she is so proud to be a part of. Anjum also talks of confronting the climate of hostility and distrust towards minorities that is spreading throughout India.
Good News (17 min)
Assam/India, 2005, dir – Altaf Mazid
A writer looks for a bit of good news in the days of the Assam Movement (1985-1990), when the youth had sunk to the lowest depths of degradation, and civilized emotions seemed to be wiped completely out of existence. Newspapers had chilling pages of depressing stories and to read them was to be overcome by an even greater feeling of horror and helplessness. Finally, the writer discovers a small piece of news item in a morning paper that gives him hope.
The Great Indian School Show (53 min)
Maharastra/India, 2005, dir – Avinash Deshpande
How ordinary is a school in which the management has installed 185 closed circuit televisions to monitor its students and every inch of the premises? Imagine how different school life would be under the constant gaze of surveillance, how easily discipline could be misrepresented and misinterpreted, how memories of schooldays would be filled with television monitors, classroom cameras and crackling sound boxes.
Lanka: The Other Side of War and Peace (75 min)
Sri Lanka, 2005, dir – Iffat Fatima
In February 2002, after more than 20 years of fighting, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the government of Sri Lanka signed a ceasefire agreement. Soon after that the A9 highway that links north and south Sri Lanka was opened to civilian traffic after twelve years. Structured like a travelogue, the film traverses the northern and southern landscape of Sri Lanka. As it shifts between north and south, it spans the history of last three decades of violence in Sri Lanka.
The Legend of Fat Mama (23 min)
West Bengal/India, 2005, dir – Rafeeq Ellias
This is a bittersweet story of the Chinese community in Calcutta intertwined with the nostalgic journey in search of a woman who once made the most delicious noodles in the city’s Chinatown district. Thriving street food, disappearing family-run eateries, mahjong clubs, a Chinese printing press that has shut down and its handwritten counterpart that continues to deliver the news every morning, and the first all-woman dragon dance group preparing for the Chinese New Year make up the Chinese heritage in Calcutta.
The Life and Times of a Lady from Avadh: Hima (135 min)
Pakistan, 2005, dir – Shireen Pasha
This documentary, on 90 year old Hima, explores the extraordinary time in the history of the subcontinent (Awadh after the decline of the Mughal Empire in the 18th century). It traces history, Hima’s life, and her relationship and letters with her renowned talukdar writer father.
Sunset Bollywood (54 min)
India, 2005, dir – Komal Tolani
A struggling actor in Bollywood dreams of his big screen break. It arrives, and he skyrockets to stardom. Becoming number one is easy after all – staying there is the hard part. Overnight success is sought by millions, but what happens when the lights go out? Where are they now? And why did they disappear in the first place? In Bombay’s glamorous celluloid world, failure is not an option. The film follows three actors on their journey back, each one unable to accept failure, craving the narcotic high of celebrity.
Team Nepal (37 min)
Nepal, 2005, dir – Girish Giri
A passionate team of Nepali footballers, representing a youth club from the Nepali border town of Birgunj, travel to Sonpur, Bihar in India to play in a tournament there. Team Nepal is the documentation of their experiences in Bihar, travelling, meeting and mixing with other footballers, living in a foreign country, and playing the game they love.
Teardrops of Karnaphuli (60 min)
Bangladesh, 2005, dir – Tanvir Mokammel
The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) is home to twelve predominantly Buddhist ethnic groups who are collectively known as the “Jumma” nation. The first disruption of the peace in CHT took place from 1959-1962, when a dam was constructed on the Karnaphuli river, submerging 54,000 acres of arable land and making refugees of 100,000 people in the process. These hill people suffered a second crisis in 1979 when the government brought plain land Bengalis from various districts and settled them in CHT.
More Information
For more details about Traveling Film South Asia, including travel schedule, please contact Film South Asia, assistant director, Upasana Shrestha at fax + 977-1-5541196 or email f...@himalassociation.org
Further information on Film South Asia ’05, including full listing, jury report, press releases, etc, is available at website http://www.himalassociation.org/fsa.
Himal Association
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Tel: 977-1-5542544