Truly amazing! On 10/26/18, Divyanshu Ganatra <dngana...@gmail.com> wrote: > The making of Unseeing, a documentary that brings alive India's 1st > inclusive expedition to Kilimanjaro > > > A 6000-metre climb through five extreme climate zones in seven days. > Sounds impossible? Well, that is exactly what a team of 13 blind and > sighted climbers have achieved. > > Their epic journey is the subject of Unseeing, a documentary which > brings alive the first inclusive expedition from India and the stories > of the first blind climbers to summit Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. > > Climbing the Kilimanjaro, the world’s highest free standing mountain, > known for extreme altitudes and varying temperatures, is not for the > faint hearted. > > Documenting the trip is quite another challenge altogether, and not > uppermost on expedition leader Anusha Subramaniam’s mind when she > suggested the climb to Divyanshu Ganatra, founder of Adventures Beyond > Barriers Foundation (ABBF). > > Ganatra, who lost his vision at the age of 19 to glaucoma, is widely > credited with using sports as a medium to bring people with and > without disabilities together. From inclusive treks to marathons, ABBF > has organised multiple expeditions. These are filmed and posted on > their YouTube page. > > > The reason everything is filmed is to document them. Many of these > trips are done in remote locations and many don’t get to actually > witness it. When you put it on film it creates more awareness in the > disability fraternity and adventure sports enthusiasts. They reach out > to us. The idea is to create an eco-system and encourage people to do > this on their own. – Divyanshu Ganatra, Founder, Adventure Beyond > Barriers Foundation > > Subramaniam, who is a sighted ally of ABBF, planned the trip as part > of a cause for the ‘Inclusion of persons with disability in the > outdoors’. A chance conversation with filmmaker Omkar Potdar, helped > crystalize plans to film the trip. > > “Omkar got excited about filming it if there were blind people as > well”, says Subramaniam. “I told him that blind people can be taken > only if we get a sponsor and he said we can try and do that. So I > decided let’s just do this with blind and sighted people and truly > make it inclusive.” > > For Potdar, the challenging terrain was not the concern. What he was > unsure about was how the visually impaired team members would perform. > Doubts that were dispelled when he met Divyanshu and fellow climber > Prasad Gurav, who is also blind. > > “I clearly remember the day I first met Divyanshu and Prasad,” recalls > Potdar. “End of that day when I was on my way back home, I had a big > smile on my face and I told myself, ‘You have your film. I think we > have just the right people for this climb.’ Divyanshu, Prasad and Uri > Basha (Israeli climber) are the not just the stars of the film but > "Champions" in every sense of the word.” > > Potdar called old colleague and friend Sehran Mohsin to join him in > filming and together they vowed “to show the world the big > misconception people have about persons with disability.” > > For Potdar and Mohsin, it was a challenge at every step. While the > trekkers were focused on the summit, the filmmakers had to do that as > well as ensure they got footage that captured the scenery, the > treacherous terrain as well as the moments of laughter and bonding. > > “Since there is no source of electricity, we had to carry solar > chargers to charge our camera batteries and sound equipment,” says > Potdar. “Carrying the solar panels on your back through the day while > walking and filming at the same time was definitely challenging. We > used to literally take turns to go out of the tent in the freezing > cold and put our cameras out for a night time-lapse of the stars.” > > They carried their laptops to the top of Kilimanjaro so they could > transfer the footage they shot everyday given the limited cards they > had for storage. But their solar panels did not have a plug to charge > laptops so every night they would pray a thousand times before > switching on the computer. > > “There used to be a moment of suspense before we switched on our > computer, fingers crossed hoping it switches on,” recalls Potdar. > “Luckily, it never betrayed us and everything went smooth.” > > It’s truly a labour of love and commitment for everyone who was part > of the expedition. > > “We needed it to be subtle and yet a strong message through visuals > that talks of Inclusion,” says Subramaniam. > > “Sadly, people are not getting the point of inclusion. They are > focused on the fact that ‘wow the blind climbed with you,’ ‘Oh you > took the blind with you’ and I have to explain, - I did not take the > blind with me. We climbed together. I want to break this mindset that > persons with disability are incapable. This climb is to send out a > strong message that all of us are part of the same society and we can > co-exist together and play and grow together beautifully. “ > > Unseeing will release on 1 November. To watch the trailer that has > everyone riveted > > > > > > Watch in Sign Language > > > > > Most Viewed > •Bat Travels takes you through Rajasthan, for women only > October 26, 2018 > •This cafe in Chennai is unique for many reasons > October 26, 2018 > •Bubbles centre in Bengaluru is seen as a real change-maker for kids > with autism > October 25, 2018 > > > > > > > > > > > Read more on Newz Hook > • Headlines October 21, 2018 > Bollywood celebrity manager accused in #MeToo movement attempts suicide > > > > > > • Headlines October 22, 2018 > Deepika and Ranveer to get married on 15 November > > • Headlines October 19, 2018 > Air quality in Delhi dips to very poor, emergency meeting held > > > > > > • Parasports October 22, 2018 > India take on Sri Lanka in 5th & final match of T20 blind cricket series > today > > > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > Disclaimer: > 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the > person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; > > 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails > sent through this mailing list.. >
Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list..
