Ananth Mahadevan is off to the Busan International Film Festival with his new film, and he has shared what compelled him to make his latest. Titled Bittersweet, Mahadevan’s new film has been nominated in the Competition section of the prestigious film fest that will take place between October 21 and October 30 this year.
Mahadevan says the condition of female sugarcane cutters in the Beed district of Maharash-tra was an eye-opener, and he felt he had to tell their story. ‘It was so disappointing to realise that something like this is going on in India, in Maharashtra. When I started probing the issue and researching, there was not much document or hard material available. It is a volatile subject and is about human survival at a humongous cost, under an excruciating circumstance’.
Elaborating on the issue, the filmmaker said as sugarcane is a seasonal crop, the cutters had to earn money within six months so that they could survive for the rest of the year. Since menstruation is part of a woman’s life, if any female worker takes a day off during that time of the month, the authorities not only deduct her salary but also of the male members of her family. He continued, “You must not forget that India is the second-largest sugar-cane exporter after Brazil. But what is the price that the authority is demanding to achieve economical success, from these sugarcane cutters — especially the women workers who are working on the field?” (IANS)
