---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: geeta thatra <[email protected]> Date: Tue, Feb 24, 2009 at 11:55 PM Subject: [invites] 28feb, 1March:: PARA-DIES ON EARTH -a film festival on Kashmir! To: [email protected]
*Dear All, * * * *We (a group of students from Christ College) cordially invite you to a film festival on Kashmir,* *PARA-DIES ON EARTH*. *Date:** February 28, 2009 (2:00 pm to 6:00 pm) & March 1, 2009 (10:00 am to 6:00 pm)* * * *Venue:** St. Joseph's Arts & Science College (Shanthi Nagar)* *PROGRAMME SCHEDULE:* * * *February 28, 2009 Saturday, 2pm-6:00pm* *Time* *Programme Schedule* 2.00-2.10 pm Welcome & Introduction 2.10-2.30 pm The Sky Below dir. Sarah Singh/20mins/english subtitles 2.30-4.50 pm Jashn-e-Azadi dir. Sanjay Kak, 2007/138mins/english subtitles 4.50-5.00 pm Break 5.00-5.30 pm Papa 2 dir. Gopal Menon, 2002/25mins/english subtitles 5.30-6.00 pm Address by the director of the film Mr. Gopal Menon *March 1, 2009 Sunday, 10am-6pm* 10:00-11:00 am Yi As Akh Padshah Bai (There was a Queen) dir. Kavita Pai & Hansa Thapliyal 2008/105mins/English subtitles 11:00-12:00 pm Killing of Kashmir Published by Channel 4, UK, 2004/49mins/english subtitles/Reporter-Sandra Jordan Producer-Rodrigo Vazquez 12:00-12:15 pm Break 12:15-1:00 pm Waiting dir. Shabnam Ara, Atul Gupta, 2005/39mins/english subtitles 1:00-1:45 pm Lunch Break 1:45-2:45 pm *Sharing of personal experiences by * *Ms. Parveena Ahangar* Founder of Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) 2:45-3:45 pm Crossing the Lines dir. Pervez Hoodbhoy & Zia Mian, 2004/50mins/english subtitles 3:45-4:00 pm Break 4.00-6.00 pm Panel Discussion Followed by Q&A * * *Panelists:* * * *Mr. Gopal Menon – ‘Political History & Religious Plurality’* *Mr. Shiva Sunder – ‘Sub-nationalism question & the Role of media’* *Mr. N. Baabaiah – ‘Human Rights Violations’* ** *_____________________________________________* ** ** *Concept note : **PARA-DIES ON EARTH – a film festival on Kashmir** * * * Kashmir, which was once referred to as 'Paradise on Earth', has indeed become an occupied zone of everyday violence & ever-present fear. The real contours of the conflict in Kashmir are invariably buried under the facile deception of a population, trapped in every day human rights violations. The struggle in Kashmir has manifested itself in different forms in different periods of Kashmir's history… alienation, discontent, corruption (moral, material and political), community and ideological isolation, and armed rebellion. It is not possible to understand the present without dispassionately reading through and understanding the political history of Kashmir. If anything is clear today about the Kashmiri struggle, it is a manifestation of its total alienation from India. *The best justification for this comes from the fact that more than 100,000 lives have been lost and almost 10,000 enforced disappearances have occurred.* Apart from this, decimation of its social fabric, existence of a life of indignity for its citizens day in and day out and unaccountable social and psychological costs, are the price paid by Kashmiris to define their struggles and aspirations. The role of media to disseminate information, raise critical questions & engage in public debate remains crucial. However, there has been a sense that the mainstream media has not been able to effectively undertake this task, especially when it comes to the Kashmir story. *To this day, we find the Kashmiri people raising their voices to address their 'real' issues. What are these 'real' questions & aspirations? What is that the people of Jammu & Kashmir are yearning for? What are their demands to the world's largest democracy? * There are no easy answers to such questions. The purpose of our discussion isn't to advocate a particular solution to the Kashmir conflict. That, we must leave to the judgment of the political leadership on all sides. All we intend to do is to put forward various questions and perspectives on the table, through several forms & modes of expression, to form an informed support or opposition to the solutions that are proposed. ** _________________________________________________________________ *SYNOPSIS OF THE FILMS* * * 1. The Sky Below - dir. Sarah Singh, 75mins/english subtitles A documentary on Pakistan and India vis-à-vis to 1947 Partition of Indian Subcontinent. It features voices from both sides of the border; while exploring ancient and historic sites - along with music - from Kutch to Kashmir and Karachi to the Khyber Pass. Note: only some parts of this documentary will be screened *2. **Jashn-e-Azadi - dir. Sanjay Kak, 2007/138mins/english subtitles* It’s 15th August, India’s Independence day, and the Indian flag ritually goes up at Lal Chowk in the heart of Srinagar, Kashmir. The normally bustling square is eerily empty– a handful of soldiers on parade, some more guarding them, and except for the attendant media crews, no Kashmiris. *3. **PAPA 2 - dir. Gopal Menon, 2002, 24mins/english subtitles* PAPA 2 was a notorious interrogation centre run by the Indian Armed Forces in Kashmir till 1996. Officially, over 2,000 - unofficially, over 10,000 - people have disappeared from the Kashmir Valley over the past 15 years. Most of these are enforced disappearances. This film documents the struggle of the mothers and wives of disappeared persons to trace their loved ones. The film deals with the harrowing tales of the families trying to trace their young men in the quagmire of rampant human rights abuse. It features interviews with the families of the affected people and also members of the Association of Parents of Disappeared People (APDP). *4. **Yi As Akh Padshah Bai (There was a Queen) – dir. Kavita Pai & Hansa Thapliyal 2008/105mins/English subtitles * "Give us guns and we'll play our role!" - These are not the words of a hardened criminal; these are the words of a teenaged girl in Kashmir less than a week after her sister was buried. Over these eighteen years, flashes of intensified conflict and bouts of negotiations have followed one another with monotonous regularity in Kashmir. Newspapers and television channels manufacture predictable binary images of conflict – angry men and weeping women, peace loving Kashmiris and terrorist Kashmiris, misguided innocents and fundamentalist separatists, victims and aggressors. Over and above these is the image that erases all differences – the Kashmiri as terrorist. The entire cast & crew of this film are women. It is through these women – proud, strong, with an undying zest for life – that the film makers examine what peace means and how it can come about in Kashmir. *5. **Killing of Kashmir – Unreported World - Published by: Channel 4, 2004* The harrowing story of the Kashmiris caught in crossfire of rape, abduction and worse. "Peace is in the headlines as India and Pakistan begin talks to end 15 years of violence in Kashmir". But this is far from a reality for civilians caught in the crossfire between security forces and militants. Both sides abduct who they want. They torture and they kill. In this latest documentary from the acclaimed Unreported World Series, Sandra Jordan and Rodrigo Vasquez bravely travel deep into Kashmir to reveal the harrowing lives of Kashmiris. *6. **Waiting - dir. Shabnam Ara, Atul Gupta,2005/39mins/english subtitles* This is a story of missing people, boys and men who were picked up by security forces and then simply disappeared. Sandwiched between India and Pakistan, Kashmir is a battleground for both. While the men are missing, but not declared dead, their wives are not widows but ‘half widows. The ‘half widows’ need extraordinary courage in living. They live with the memories of their love. Suddenly they have to switch from being the woman in the veil to the bread-earner. Society treats them as unattached property like it treats most single women in India. Their psychiatric problems add to the statistic that Kashmir has the highest number of psychotic patients in the world. The immediate result of such a situation is a sharp increase in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSDT) patients. *7. **Crossing the Lines: Kashmir, Pakistan, India - dir. Pervez Hoodboy & Zia Mian, 2004/47mins/english subtitles* This Film is a story of people at war over borders and boundaries. After four wars, Kashmiris and their land are divided between Pakistan and India, the source of recurring crises. The next war may well be a nuclear war. In this tragedy, each side tells the story of the injustice and violence of the other, and feels only the suffering of their own. This path-breaking independent documentary film, made in Pakistan, challenges us to look at Kashmir with new eyes and to hope for a new way forward. ______________________________________________________ * * To mobilise support for this film festival, we have developed a poster & concept note and the same are attached. Please feel free to print or forward the poster and kindly use it in mobilizing students & interested individuals to ensure maximum participation in the film festival. You may also print & post them on your organisational & community notice boards. *For details of participation or to make a contribution please contact: Email: [email protected]. Please confirm your participation, as it will help us to do the logistical arrangements. * *Looking forward for your participation!* *Geeta.* *Email: [email protected]* *PS: This programme is not a sponsored one. Hence we are trying to raise contributions from concerned individuals & organisations. Do let us know if you can support us in any way?* ____________________________________________________________ *Background of the group organising the film festival:* We are a group of students from different academic streams at Christ College, who yearn to learn more and understand the conflict in Kashmir in its totality and explore the 'real' questions of the region by passionately engaging with its history. We intend to include other students and interested individuals to participate and support us. This initiative is supported by Pedestrian Pictures, Other Media Communications and other media and human rights activists. 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