Report on FSA '01

Film South Asia '01, the festival of South Asian documentaries, was held in Kathmandu from 4 to 7 October and was a highly successful event. The festival fulfilled its objectives of being a forum to showcase the best documentaries in the past two years on South Asian subjects, in particular films on women, cross-border trafficking and migration; bringing together filmmakers from all over the Subcontinent to discuss the non-fiction film in the region; and promote the culture of watching documentaries.

FSA '01, organised jointly by the Kathmandu-based Himal Association and Himal South Asian  magazine, was much more successful than the earlier editions of the festival in several counts. The films that were entered were higher in number than the earlier festivals with a total of 175 entries from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, UK, US and elsewhere.  In FSA '97 135 entries were received while in FSA '01 this number stood at 149. The quality of the films too were much better and selecting 50 for the festival was a difficult process and almost all the films had to be watched twice or even thrice by the selection committee. A large number of filmmakers attended the festival to present their films and interact with the audience and discuss their films with other directors and producers. About two-thirds films were represented by their makers or someone associated with the film. Probably the most encouraging aspect of the festival was the large turnout of the Kathmandu public at the festival. Almost all the screenings ran to packed houses and many had to turn away because they could not get tickets to the shows.    

The preparation for the festival began about a year before the event. Entry forms were sent to non-fiction filmmakers from all over the region and films were sought extensively. Advertisements calling for entries were published so that filmmakers and the general public around South Asia came to know of the festival.

Once the entries were received (175 in total) the selection committee, comprising of festival organising committee members and South Asian journalists and filmmakers, sat down to watch the films. Because of the wonderful quality of the films received and the limited slots in the festival, the selection was a long but nevertheless gratifying process for the committee. Each film was discussed intensively for its merits and demerits, only after which a decision was reached. If there was a lack of consensus the films were watched two or even three times. At the end, no doubt, some very worthy documentaries could not be included in FSA '01 because of lack of time.

When the entry forms had been sent the organisers had planned to screen 30 to 40 films with repeat screening of many of the films based on their quality and on popular demand. But because of the quality and diversity of the films received, it was not possible to screen less than 50 films. When the final selection was made the films were on diverse subjects: politics to profiles, culture to globalisation, child abuse to environmentalism, cross border trafficking to masculinity.

When the selection of the films was over and as the event drew near, the festival was advertised extensively in Kathmandu. Banners and posters were put all over town, advertisements were placed on leading Nepali newspapers and on the several local FM stations. The poster, the catalogue and programme sheets were designed by one of the best-known designer and artists in Kathmandu Mr. Subash Rai and the design was very effective. The slogan for the festival was "Speak up for the documentary" in view of the need to popularise the documentary.

The festival opened in the afternoon of 4 October at Russian Cultural Centre, the festival venue. Mr. Shyam Benegal, internationally known filmmaker from Bombay and chair of the jury, FSA '01 opened the festival. Secretary General of South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Mr. Nihal Rodrigo and Mr. Yadav Kharel, chairman of the Nepal Film Development Board also spoke on the occasion. Mr. Kanak Mani Dixit, Chairman of Film South Asia Organising Committee and editor of Himal South Asian magazine welcomed the festival delegates and the invitees for the opening.

During the opening of the festival Mr. Rodrigo launched the Clearinghouse for South Asian Non-Fiction Films which has the aims to act as the databank on South Asian non-fiction films and filmmakers and to sell non-fiction on South Asian subjects for non-broadcasting purposes.  A need has been felt for a Clearinghouse that markets non-fiction films all over the world so that libraries, researchers, students, activists, journalists, development organisations have easy access to films on various South Asian issues. The databank on films and filmmakers will also go a long way in promoting the South Asian non-fiction film.

The opening film was "The Killing Terraces" by Dhruba Basnet on the Maoist uprising in Nepal. Shot in the four districts of western Nepal where the Maoist uprising began the films provides a balanced view on the effects of the six-year old insurgency in which some two thousand people including policemen, civilians and Maoists have been killed. The film was very well-received.

The 50 films of were screened back-to-back in two halls over four days at the Russian Cultural Centre in downtown Kathmandu. Most of the screening ran to full houses with over 6,000 people attending the festival. Some of the films had repeat screenings based on popular demand.

On the evening of the second day of the festival, 21 short silent films were screened as part of Kathmandu Silent Night, a festival within a festival. These 21 "silent shorts" had no voices and each was about 5 minutes long. The silent films were a great hit and ran to a packed house. 

On the third of the festival a symposium was held on Public Service Broadcasting in South Asia with the participation of attending filmmakers from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan and also from television producers and journalists based in Kathmandu. The symposium was an occasion to discuss the importance and necessity to make television programmes on social issues for the South Asian audience. On the fourth day of the festival another discussion, led by Pakistan journalist and filmmaker Ms. Beena Sarwar, was organised on how satellite television portrays women and children.  

 Overall the films were received very well. Over 6,000 people attended the festival over four days. The films, especially the ones of which the director or producer were present, were followed by lively discussions. The quality of the films were highly appreciated by the Kathmandu audience as well as by the filmmakers who had come to Kathmandu for the event.  

On 7 October, the last day of the festival, the three member jury, chaired by Mr. Shyam Benegal with Ms. Firdous Azim, scholar and critic from Dhaka, and Mr. Neer Shah, actor and film director from Kathmandu as members, announced the awards. The Ram Bahadur Trophy for Best film was awarded to My Migrant Soul by Yasmine Kabir of Dhaka. The jury citation for the award read: "A deeply moving account of a young man's shattered dreams as he travels as a migrant worker to Malaysia from Bangladesh. The film also portrays two remarkable women – his mother and sister – as they try to get news of him unaware that he has been reduced to a prisoner and virtually a slave. This human tragedy is representative of a broader problem in this age of globalisation." The Second Best Film Award went to A Rough Cut on the Life and Times of Lachuman Magar by Dinesh Deokota of Kathmandu and the Third Best Film Award went to Jari Mari: Of Cloth and Other Stories by Surabhi Sharma of Bombay.  Amar Kanwar's King of Dreams won the Jury Award. The first, second and third films carried a purse of USD 2000, 1000 and 500 respectively.

According to the Jury "the general quality of the films entered for Film South Asia '01 of a very high standard which only goes to prove that the genre of documentary and short film-making is alive and well and thriving in South Asia."