I watched Firaaq, Nandita Das's debut as a director, followed by Onir's I AM (starring Nandita Das). What a Sunday I had!
My respect for Nandita Das, her work and her person increased 10 fold after I discovered her writings on her website here.
As sort of an ode to her and to entice you to go read her thoughts, here are some excerpts of her writings on various subjects:
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| Photo by Vandana Kohli |
Of Parenting (2010):
"I am daunted by the fact that the child will have hundreds of other influences and there is very little I will be able to do to control them. But I am even more uncomfortable with my desire to want to control those influences, many of which I know I will have problems with. My nightmares are of those influences that will make him want junk food, the gadgets that he/she will want to possess, the extravagant birthday parties that he/she might be exposed to and the competition that the world will impose on the child. My nightmare continues as visions of me being this monster mother who says "no" to everything. My broad principle of believing ‘that freedom of choice is important and with the right guidance, will make an individual discerning' will surely be tested many times over.
... I have to say, while this is going to be testing times, I am also delighted by the fact that my husband and I will be forced to be better human beings. We will have to be more honest and have greater clarity in our explanations than we have ever had. The child is going to observe our actions and responses to his/her questions and not just listen to what we have to say. So our thought action gap cannot be too wide, or else the child may fall into it!"
Of Beauty, Identity and Media (2010):
"I have often wondered why are we supposed to feel proud or ashamed of attributes that we are born into. I have done nothing to be born as a woman, a Hindu, an Indian or dark. But then there are choices I have made through the years that have been mine and if I must be judged, let those be the ones. But this is easier said than done. I am shocked to see the rise in the number of fairness creams, dark actresses looking paler and paler with every film and magazines, hoardings, films and advertisements showing only fair women. You could ask what is there to be shocked, as all this has always existed. But with more women in the work force, voicing their desires and concerns, more debate about gender equality and sensitivity, one would imagine that racism of this sort would be on the decline.
...What with fairytales like sleeping beauty talking about “who is the fairest of them all” and Snow White and Barbie dolls becoming role models for little girls. Right from our childhood the message is clear, and in later years it is only reinforced in many ways. Film songs call a girl gori (fair) or “pardon the dark because it has a good heart” in a song like kale hain to kya hua dilwale hain. Look anywhere and everywhere, there are blatant and subtle reinforcements that only fair is lovely."
Of Women's Rights Heroines (2009):
"Things have changed over the years, not because of one Jhansi ki Rani or a Sarojini Naidu, but because of hundreds of thousands of women, who have crossed the threshold and taken that step towards freedom and in the process opened doors for other women. When I think of that woman, the one who would have been the first to work outside her home, or the first to drive a car, or the one to see a play...all those things that many of us take for granted. For me, I want to pay tribute to all those countless faceless, nameless women who probably have no idea, what they did for women at large.
But if there was one thing that I would want to change in us women, across class, is the sense of guilt-always feeling guilty for not being able to do our best. The urban working woman is constantly feeling guilty for not being able to be a super wife, super mom, super at her work and all the other roles the society, and thereby she, has thrusted upon herself. Conditioning of generations is not going to vanish in a day, but we need to have faith in ourselves and feel no pressure to prove it to the world."
Of Firaaq and the related controversary (2009)
"I don’t remember exactly when the seed of this film was sown. It had to do with waking up to newspapers filled with stories of violence; conversations about identity and communalism that would surface deep-seated prejudice and a strong notion of the ‘other’, turning it into a polarized debate. It had to do with meeting many victims of violence and even some who perpetrated it. But, most of all it had to do with those who remained willfully silent. The sadness, the anger, the helplessness kept growing and a deep desire to share all those stories with a larger group of people began to take roots. I didn’t start out looking for a story that I could direct, instead the stories compelled me to become a director.
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| Courtesy - www.firaaqthefilm.com |
Firaaq is my directorial debut film, born out of my own anguish and helplessness about the growing divide in our society. The story is set over a 24-hour period, a month after the carnage in Gujarat.
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Often films about violence are full of violence that they set out to critique. But my film is about the fierce and delicate emotions that the characters go through. It’s sad that a film with the intent to move towards understanding our troubled times and bringing us closer to a collective healing, is being pushed in a political space."
Of the Mumbai Terror attacks (2008):
" I got a strange message from a TV journalist that said “Forgiving a terrorist should be left to God. But fixing their appointment with God, is entirely our responsibility. - Indian Army”. Change the word terrorist to Americans/Hindus/Muslims and sign it off by the Terrorist and the meaning is not too different. Such anger, such hatred in a ‘common man’ to me is no less scary. There has to a way out of this vicious cycle, beyond an eye for eye.
I have no idea what I am feeling anymore. It is all muddled and contradictory thoughts are finding its little corners in the mind. All I know is that we can’t afford to be cynical, even in the face of so much hatred and violence, or else it will get only worse. In the morning making Firaaq seemed meaningless, but as I type away furiously, hoping to catch up with the speed of my emotions, I feel I want to share the film with everyone, more than ever before. Because I know this day will end but the residue it will leave, will linger long after, in the form of fear, anger, prejudice, revenge, and will slowly become part of our psyche. We have to save ourselves from all this and have to find a way to understand, empathise and love. All these beautiful words I know have lost their meaning and sound either clichéd or pretentious. We have to reclaim these and make it part of our life, with all our might. "
Of Pakistan and India (2005):
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Every year on 14th August a special event is organized at the (Wagah Border) India-Pakistan border. It starts after the dramatic change of ground ceremony (sometime late evening) and carries on till about 2 am. People separated by just an imaginary line (and barbed wires in some places) celebrate the Independence Day of Pakistan on the 14th followed by India on the15th. I have been wanting to be a part of this collective celebration ever since it started, 10 years ago and finally this year I will be there with over 5 lakh people to reaffirm our faith in peace and harmony! More when I come back.
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I along with my husband Saumya, had gone to the Wagah border that has divided the two Punjabs since 1947. On the midnight of the 14th of August, we went to celebrate the Independence Day of India and Pakistan, with what seemed like a lakh other people. Kuldip Nayar, a very senior and respected journalist had started a unique initiative with 11 other people in 1995. Everybody thought he was mad to even think such an endeavour would have any takers. But these 12 dreamers marched on to the border with candles in their hands and a firm belief in their heart. Ten years later, a sea of people gathered there to listen to music by performers from both sides of the border. They also heard eminent people speaking on issues of peace and harmony. It was pure euphoria! Then some of us walked to the border with candles at midnight, to reiterate our beliefs. As the peace caravan moved towards the zero line, the security men used force to prevent the people from stepping into the restricted area, but we did manage to go till the gate. "
I could add so many more quotes, but instead I ask you to go read the entire articles here.
