Film Festival on Secularism
4, 5 Jan 2020; 10 am to 8 pm
@ Periyar Thidal, Chennai
10 am
In the Name of God
Dir: Anand Patwardhan; 75 min
IN THE NAME OF GOD focuses on the campaign waged by the militant Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to destroy a 16th century mosque in Ayodhya said to have been built by Babar, the first Mughal Emperor of India. The VHP claim the mosque was built at the birthsite of the Hindu god Ram after Babar razed an existing Ram temple. They are determined to build a new temple to Ram on the same site. This controversial issue which successive governments have refused to resolve has led to religious riots which have cost thousands their lives, culminating in the mosque’s destruction by the Hindus in December of 1992.
Farooq vs the State
Dir: Anjali Monteiro & KP Jayasankar; 25 min
Farooq versus the state’ deals with the controversial case of Farooq Mhapkar, one of the key persons who was wrongly accused in the Hari Masjid case, one of the most serious episodes of the Mumbai riots of 1992-93
11:45 am Special talk by A S Panneer Selvan, journalist
2 pm
Jashn e Azadi
Dir: Sanjay Kak; 139 min
It's India's Independence day, and its flag ritually goes up in the heart of Srinagar, Kashmir. But the empty streets and the sullen silence that greet India's claim on Kashmir spark off old questions about freedom - azadi - and the denial of freedom. After 18 years of an armed struggle, with 60,000 dead and nearly 7,000 missing, Kashmir's people begin to look within their ledger of loss. Using a mix of vérité footage, rare archival material, poetry and text, a provocative look at Indian democracy, and a reflection on power, resistance and "freedom's terrible thirst".
4:20 pm Special talk by Jamalan, critic
5 pm
Way Back Home
Dir: Supriyo Sen; 120 min
In the times of renewed religious hatred in the Indian subcontinent WAY BACK HOME transcend the war movie genre and examine the impact of conflict on the ordinary civilian across borders, politics and religions. Shot clandestinely in Bangladesh the film is a courageous and militant reminder of defining events for the people of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
7 pm Special talk by Prema Revathi, journalist
5 January, Sunday
10 am
What the Fields Remember
Dir: Subasri Krishnan; 52 min
On 18th February 1983, nearly 1800 Bengali Muslims were killed in Nellie and surrounding villages in Assam in one morning. No one was ever prosecuted and the incident remains in the annals of India’s violent history. “What the Fields Remember” is a revisiting of the event and an exploration of how the survivors remember the violence 32 years later, and how the spaces that have witnessed this violence continue to mark people’s relationship to history and memory.
Foreigner in My Own Land
Dir: Nishajyothi Sharma; 50 min
Nepalis (Gorkhas) of Assam are not foreigners or outsiders, except for few who may have migrated to Assam (India) post 1971. However, the prevalent sentiment among the Assamese masses is quitecontrary to what history says and the Assam Accord of 1985 has agreed to.
Through this self-reflexive film, the filmmaker (who herself is an Asameli Nepali/Gorkha) explores the notion of identity of the community in Assam.
12 pm Special talk by Prof Manivannan
2 pm
The Color of My Home
Dir: Sanjay Barnela & Fara Naqvi; 40 min
What happens to people when they are violently displaced? Forced out of their home and ancestral village, buffeted by winds of hate, running for their lives, scattered like human debris in relief camps. Never able to return. How do they rebuild new homes and new lives, with hearts unable to leave the old one behind?
Ammi
Dir: Sunil Kumar; 90 min
This is one woman's two-year fight for justice. Battered by the police, having been told by the myriad government agencies, investigating her son's disappearance, that there are no leads, she still stands with conviction.
Lynch Nation
Dir: Shaheen Ahmed & Ashfaque EJ; 43 min
A relentless journey across India listening to heart-wrenching stories of mob lynching that have torn apart families and shaken the entire nation.
The film documents seven incidents of mob lynching by traveling through the personal spaces of the victims, and recording the testimonies of their families and survivors.
5 pm Special talk by Kavitha Muralitharan, journalist
6 pm
Salam India
Dir: Shazia Khan; 55 min
India today is home to 16 million Muslims, the second largest population of Muslims in the world. ‘Salaam India’ documents the extra/ordinary lives of some of them.
The documentary engages some young Muslim adults, asking them a question: what is an Indian muslim?. A group of friends and a radio jockey from Delhi, a trainee cleric at Deoband in uttar pradesh, a gaffer in mumbai’s film industry, even the inimitable Sania Mirza talk about: Are they Indians? Are they muslims? Are these two different questions.
Ustad Bismillah Khan
Dir: Dinesh Kumar Prabakar; 18 min
The film presents the contribution of Shehnai Maestro to the music world.
Special talk by Pralayan, playwright / theatre activist
We welcome you!
Amudhan R.P.
Curtaor
Film Festival on Secularism
4, 5 Jan 2020; 10 am to 8 pm
@ Periyar Thidal, Chennai
Jointly organised by MARUPAKKAM & Periyar Self Respect Media
4 January, Saturday
4 January, Saturday
10 am
In the Name of God
Dir: Anand Patwardhan; 75 min
IN THE NAME OF GOD focuses on the campaign waged by the militant Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to destroy a 16th century mosque in Ayodhya said to have been built by Babar, the first Mughal Emperor of India. The VHP claim the mosque was built at the birthsite of the Hindu god Ram after Babar razed an existing Ram temple. They are determined to build a new temple to Ram on the same site. This controversial issue which successive governments have refused to resolve has led to religious riots which have cost thousands their lives, culminating in the mosque’s destruction by the Hindus in December of 1992.
Farooq vs the State
Dir: Anjali Monteiro & KP Jayasankar; 25 min
Farooq versus the state’ deals with the controversial case of Farooq Mhapkar, one of the key persons who was wrongly accused in the Hari Masjid case, one of the most serious episodes of the Mumbai riots of 1992-93
11:45 am Special talk by A S Panneer Selvan, journalist
2 pm
Jashn e Azadi
Dir: Sanjay Kak; 139 min
It's India's Independence day, and its flag ritually goes up in the heart of Srinagar, Kashmir. But the empty streets and the sullen silence that greet India's claim on Kashmir spark off old questions about freedom - azadi - and the denial of freedom. After 18 years of an armed struggle, with 60,000 dead and nearly 7,000 missing, Kashmir's people begin to look within their ledger of loss. Using a mix of vérité footage, rare archival material, poetry and text, a provocative look at Indian democracy, and a reflection on power, resistance and "freedom's terrible thirst".
4:20 pm Special talk by Jamalan, critic
5 pm
Way Back Home
Dir: Supriyo Sen; 120 min
In the times of renewed religious hatred in the Indian subcontinent WAY BACK HOME transcend the war movie genre and examine the impact of conflict on the ordinary civilian across borders, politics and religions. Shot clandestinely in Bangladesh the film is a courageous and militant reminder of defining events for the people of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
7 pm Special talk by Prema Revathi, journalist
5 January, Sunday
10 am
What the Fields Remember
Dir: Subasri Krishnan; 52 min
On 18th February 1983, nearly 1800 Bengali Muslims were killed in Nellie and surrounding villages in Assam in one morning. No one was ever prosecuted and the incident remains in the annals of India’s violent history. “What the Fields Remember” is a revisiting of the event and an exploration of how the survivors remember the violence 32 years later, and how the spaces that have witnessed this violence continue to mark people’s relationship to history and memory.
Foreigner in My Own Land
Dir: Nishajyothi Sharma; 50 min
Nepalis (Gorkhas) of Assam are not foreigners or outsiders, except for few who may have migrated to Assam (India) post 1971. However, the prevalent sentiment among the Assamese masses is quitecontrary to what history says and the Assam Accord of 1985 has agreed to.
Through this self-reflexive film, the filmmaker (who herself is an Asameli Nepali/Gorkha) explores the notion of identity of the community in Assam.
12 pm Special talk by Prof Manivannan
2 pm
The Color of My Home
Dir: Sanjay Barnela & Fara Naqvi; 40 min
What happens to people when they are violently displaced? Forced out of their home and ancestral village, buffeted by winds of hate, running for their lives, scattered like human debris in relief camps. Never able to return. How do they rebuild new homes and new lives, with hearts unable to leave the old one behind?
Ammi
Dir: Sunil Kumar; 90 min
This is one woman's two-year fight for justice. Battered by the police, having been told by the myriad government agencies, investigating her son's disappearance, that there are no leads, she still stands with conviction.
Lynch Nation
Dir: Shaheen Ahmed & Ashfaque EJ; 43 min
A relentless journey across India listening to heart-wrenching stories of mob lynching that have torn apart families and shaken the entire nation.
The film documents seven incidents of mob lynching by traveling through the personal spaces of the victims, and recording the testimonies of their families and survivors.
5 pm Special talk by Kavitha Muralitharan, journalist
6 pm
Salam India
Dir: Shazia Khan; 55 min
India today is home to 16 million Muslims, the second largest population of Muslims in the world. ‘Salaam India’ documents the extra/ordinary lives of some of them.
The documentary engages some young Muslim adults, asking them a question: what is an Indian muslim?. A group of friends and a radio jockey from Delhi, a trainee cleric at Deoband in uttar pradesh, a gaffer in mumbai’s film industry, even the inimitable Sania Mirza talk about: Are they Indians? Are they muslims? Are these two different questions.
Ustad Bismillah Khan
Dir: Dinesh Kumar Prabakar; 18 min
The film presents the contribution of Shehnai Maestro to the music world.
Special talk by Pralayan, playwright / theatre activist
We welcome you!
Amudhan R.P.
Curtaor
Film Festival on Secularism
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