Film on Gauri leaves audience moist-eyed

The two-day Clone Documentary Film Festival on Social Justice brought many unusual films to the city. The films were screened on May 4 and 5 at East Cultural Association in Indiranagar.

Curator Amudan R P said, “The festival was designed to encourage a discussion after every film.”

‘Our Gauri’, an English-language documentary based on journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh’s life, was the inaugural film.

Directed by Pradeep K P, it follows her journey, highlighting her causes and her struggle for communal harmony. The documentary left the audience emotional.

Pradeep, who had worked with Gauri closely, had collected extensive footage from her life before she was shot dead by two men at her house on September 5, 2017.

Kavitha Lankesh, Gauri’s sister, said, “After what happened to her, I realised the world can be a cruel place. She was such a brave and bold woman. Her story should reach everyone, and I hope someday documentaries can be released in public theatres.”

‘Dollar City’, directed by Amudhan R P, provided an insight into the economics of Tirupur, a city known for its hosiery industry, in Tamil Nadu.

“The film is not about the plight of the people working in these industries but the consensus among them. It’s like a whirlpool into which everybody gets pulled in. It happens in almost any industry you work in,” said Amudan.

Director K P Sasi of ‘Voices from the Ruins’, said, “All of us have a voice and we can use it to express ourselves in whatever way we want. I hope we can bring about change to experience what freedom means in this country.”

Films screened at the festival

Up, Down and Sideways directed by Anushka Meenakshi and Iswar Srikumar

Our Gauri directed by Deepu (Pradeep K P)

Survey Number Zero directed by Priya Thuvassery

India’s Forbidden Love directed by Sadhana Subramaniam

Voices from the Ruins directed by K P Sasi

Dollar City directed by R P Amuthan

The Slave Genesis directed by Aneez K Mappila

I am Bonnie directed by Farha Katun, Satarupa Santra and Saurabh Kanti Dutta

MOD directed by Pushpa Rawat