By Nawaz Yasin Islam
SHILLONG: Films are known to have a uniquely powerful ubiquity with human culture. The distribution of this digital format of ideas to the masses has always been regarded as a powerful tool to move passion, stir minds and evoke reactions.
Cinema has become a powerful vehicle for transmitting cultural values, for education, leisure and propaganda and its use as an empowering tool in the context of North East India formed the basis of a panel discussion during the Indie8 film festival at St. Anthony’s College on Saturday.
The inherent capacity of films to inspire action and create awareness can propel this form of art to staggering heights and in this context, questions were raised on the approach of directors towards filmmaking.
The panelists included Wanphrang Diengdoh co-director of the film 19/87, Kit Shangpliang, an alumni of St Anthony’s Mass Communication Department, noted film maker Utpal Borpujari and Patricia Mukhim, Editor The Shillong Times explored several areas of film making from funding for meaningful documentaries to empowerment of women.
Since raising money for an independent production is a mammoth task, the panelists emphasized on the funding options that upcoming filmmakers could look into. Sanjay Kak, an Indian documentary filmmaker while stressing on crowd funding and other possible ventures, remarked, “Funding should go to people with outstanding ideas only.”
Film makers and editor, Tarun Bhartiya while responding to statements about the paucity of films from Meghalaya and the North East said many films are being made in Jaintia Hills and West Khasi Hills but perhaps film makers do not yet have a platform for showcasing their films to a wider public.
Panelist Utpal Borpujari, a film maker and critic said insofar as documentaries are concerned not much has been explored. “Except for some Manipuri films, others have not really touched the range of issues plaguing the region,” he rued. Borpujari also spoke about the scarce finances available for making serious films.
Patricia Mukhim, Editor, The Shillong Times, while pointing to absence of films showcasing the rich and varied culture of the North Eastern region felt that the region is a film makers’ paradise ‘several documentaries with stirring messages could come out of the region. “We have about 238 ethnic groups in North East but owing to the lack of documentation, we are losing valuable cultural knowledge,” she noted adding that film making was questionable if real life was not depicted and issues are romanticized. Mukhim called for grooming more women directors, producers and camera persons to highlight women-centric issues from the region. “In matrilineal Meghalaya, just within Greater Shillong the latest statistics revealed that about 4600 households are headed by women. This calls for a film to show how these women cope and what agonies they go through,” Mukhim added.
Kit Shangpliang opined that music and films are both creative art forms and could blend very well if enough creative investment is made to produce such genres. He said music and films are both popular media and could help spread positive messages among the youth. Shangpliang felt that films could enable better community mobilization.
An interactive audience provoked by the moderator, Partho Chakravorty, programme executive, DDK Shillong spoke their minds. Sanjay Kak spoke about the universality of films. “A documentary on witchcraft in Meghalaya need not be made by Khasis but by someone from Tripura,” Kak said. Borpujari also stressed on the fact that the language should never be a barrier in an age where dubbing and the use of subtitles has gained prominence.
The discussion culminated with the panelists and audience agreeing that there is much to be shared even within the region way of films. There was a consensus that film makers of the region could pool their ideas and interact better since there is a huge scope for taking the narrative within the region to the outside world.