Films

1.                 Born In Debt: -

The film explores the lives of agriculture labour in Punjab in the backdrop of green revolution. The film reveals that agriculture labour in Punjab is under swear mental, physical, economical and social pressure. The film starts with a confession of a person in his sixties that he inherited debt from his parents and ends with a teenage girl oblivious of her future. The film links mechanization, change in crop pattern and deteriorating health and overall living conditions of agriculture labour. It is an attempt to articulate the missing variable of the development’s narrative of Punjab.

The film has also been subtitled in English. This film got commendation award at IDPA festival 2002

Duration: 40 Mins, DVD

2.                 Karsewa: a different story: -

The film is a documentation of a voluntary movement led by a saint to clean a 170-kilometer long river. Their efforts revive a dead river associated with Guru Nanak Dev. The film obviates how medieval wisdom can be interpreted for mobilization on a modern issue like pollution. The film questions the established perceptions of religion and karsewa. In the film religious knowledge is discussed to help the people out of difficulties by collective efforts.  In an ambience where religious extremism is growing the film explores the pro-people aspect of religion and questions the extremism through a religious discourse.

The film has also been subtitled in English.

Duration: 62 Mins, VCD/DVD

3.                 Zulm Aur Aman: -

Zulm Aur Aman is an anti war short film. On the poetry of Sahir Ludhianvi and Habib Zalib the second war has been juxtaposed with recent gulf war. The profits earned by war mongering nations during first gulf war have been subtitled to establish the point that war are the mechanism of rich nations to earn profit at heavy cost of human life. This film has been widely screened all over world as part of anti-war movement. The film has been subtitled in English, Hindi and Punjabi.

Duration: 6 Mins, VCD

 

4.       Sudarshan: An institution of simplicity

'Sudarshan: An institution of simplicity' is a documentary film about the life and works of a human rights activist, Sudarshan Kumar. He was one of the founders of Association of Democratic Rights (AFDR) Punjab and followed the footsteps of Baba Sohan Singh Bhakna who was founder president of Ghadar Party.

Duration: 44 Mins, DVD

5.       Unearthing Unfamiliar: -

Unearthing Unfamiliar is a biographical film of Punjabi Scholar Prof. Pritam Singh. He was founder head of Punjabi Department. He is supposed to be one of the finest teachers. He did lots of work in collecting old manuscripts and further interpreting it. His lifetime is crucial vis-à-vis knowledge production in Punjabi is concerned. This film is a comment on the phenomena of knowledge production in Punjab after partition. The film places Prof Pritam Singh and his works in historical perspective. The history of Punjab and the intellectual milieu is interlinked with the life of Prof. Pritam Singh so the film has much more to say then a mere biographical narrative.

The film has also been subtitled in English.

Duration: 42 Mins, DVD

6.       Anhad Baja Bajey: -

Anhad Baja Bajey is one of the poems (kafi) of Baba Bulleh Shah, a well-known Sufi poet of medieval period. This film traces the tradition of debate in Punjab from ancient time to its contemporary practice in Lahore. Nazzam Hussain Sayeed’s house in Lahore hosts weekly meetings (Sangat) to discuss the issues of life for more then three decades. The recitation of poetry of Bhai Gurdass in Sangat demolishes the nation states’ narrative of ‘the other’ and Sikhs’ monopoly over the literature produced by Bhai Gurdass. He was contemporary of second to sixth Sikh Gurus and was scribe of Guru Arjun Dev when he compiled Guru Granth Sahib. This film presents a secular image of Punjab that is much more humane then political secularism. As this is a tradition established in this region despite all the odds and oppositions by the states. This film arouses the need of alternative school of learning in a subtle way. The film is in Punjabi.

Duration: 35 Mins, DVD

7.       Not Every Time: -

‘Not every time …’ is an account of a mass-movement in Eastern Punjab. This movement initiated after the rape and murder of college student in 1997 still continues as the leaders of the movement are paying the price of raising a women’s issue in a patriarchal society. The film explores different aspects of the issue; social, political, legal and cultural through rural oral narrative. This movement invokes different identities (history, kinship, social, political and ideological) on a gender issue. Furthermore the participation of women in the movement and their approach to the space hitherto known as predominantly male space seems to be questioning the issue to be of ‘living being’ rather than of the ‘victim’. The film is a multilayered narrative that has many subtexts. The narrative of the film raises questions instead of providing answers. It is an attempt to document a struggle on the periphery, which could not become subject for journalism and academics despite a long span of nine years and regular participation of thousands of people. The film questions the notion of national-security associated with border and arsenals and obviates the insecurity of womenfolk as major issue. Through retired army personnel the film invites to rethink the very notion of national security and places confident citizenry in general and women in particular at higher pedestal than nuclear bombs.

This film was screened in film festivals; Signs 2007 in competition section and Karimpur Film Festival 2008.

Duration: 59 Mins, VCD/DVD

8.       Seva: -

Seva (meaning "service") is a multi-perspective engagement with the literary heritage. The film juxtaposes local engagements with heritage material—whether in conservation laboratories, digitizing preservation units, collection shelves, scholars’ desks, or crematoria—with global contexts. The crisscrossing of the stories narrated, often cutting into each-other, creates a seemingly contradictory narrative which evolves into a dialogue. The film rarely moves away from close shots capturing finer details of local initiatives while opening a window to the global scenario. References to the wanton destruction caused by military and political campaigns further underscore the urgency for dialogue.

This film was screened in Punjabi International Film Festival, Toronto-2013

Duration: 27 Mins, DVD