Film Screening and Discussion with Stalin K. of Drishti Media Collective

FRIENDS OF SOUTH ASIA (FOSA)

working towards a peaceful, prosperous, and hate-free South Asia

Community Media and Social Justice Film Screening and Discussion with Stalin K. (Community Media Activist from Gujarat, India) The screening is FREE and OPEN to the public. (download html flyer)
Thursday, Nov 17, 6pm Building 200, Room 202, History Corner 450 Serra Mall, Stanford University (directions)	Friday, Nov 18, 6pm 2040 Valley Life Sciences Bldg. (VLSB) University of California, Berkeley (directions)

Stalin K. is one of the founders of the Drishti Media Collective and is a key spokesperson for the movement to democratize India’s airwaves.

The event will feature a screening of his films “Gujarat- A Work in Progress” and “Lesser Humans/Venth Chetha”, followed by a talk and discussion. Stalin K. will speak about his work as an activist in the areas of literacy, mass popular education and women's empowerment. He will also discuss his work with Video Volunteers and the role of community media in empowering people to be partners in the development process and in the struggle for social justice. Specifically, he will discuss his groundbreaking work in community radio that facilitated social change by enabling ordinary citizens to demand accountability from the government.

FOSA invites you to participate in this important discussion about the advocacy work of community media, particularly in a media landscape that has been colonized by corporate interests.

PRESENTED BY

Friends of South Asia
EKTA
Indian Muslim Council - USA
Association for India's Development, Bay Area
Narika
The Asian Religions and Cultures Initiative (ARC)/India, Stanford University
Department of Religious Studies, Stanford University
Shorenstein Asia/Pacific Research Center at the Institute of International Studies, Stanford University
South Asian Law Students Association, UC Berkeley
Center for South Asian Studies, UC Berkeley
Townsend Center - Muslim Identities and Cultures Working Group, UC Berkeley
Film Studies Program at UC Berkeley

We thank the Singh Foundation for their assistance with Stalin K.'s visit.

Lesser Humans / Venth Chetha
(59 min. Gujarati with English Subtitles. 1998)

" Must see... a film like this is made for, and should be seen by, South Asian audience everywhere. "
- Mari Marcel Thekaekara, Himal Magazine

50 years of Independence have not changed the lives of the Bhangis in Gujarat, who even today continue the profession prescribed to them by the caste system - manually disposing human excreta. This film investigates the factors responsible for the continuance of this often banned inhuman practice.

Excellence Award, Earth Vision Film Festival, Tokyo, 1999

Best Film, New Delhi Video Festival, 1999

Silver Conch, 5th Mumbai International Film Festival, 1998

Special Mention, Amnesty International Film Festival, Amsterdam, 1998

San Francisco International Film Festival, 1998

Sakshi Film Festival, Bangalore, 1998

Prakriti Film Festival, Pune, 1999

Cinema du Reel, Paris, 1999

14th Munich International Documentary Film Festival, 1999

1st International Human Rights Film Festival, Nuremberg, 1999

Panchgani Human Rights Film Festival, India, 2000

Zanzibar International Film Festival, Tanzania, 2001

Another World Film Festival, Hyderabad, India, 2003

Produced by Drishti Media Collective. Presented by Navsarjan Trust, Ahmedabad

Gujarat, a Work in Progress
(35 min. Hindi and Gujarati with English Subtitles. 2002)

This film through interviews with survivors reconstructs the systematic carnage unleashed on the minorities in Ahmedabad from 28th February 2002 onwards. The film is a work in progress and was put together to be submitted to the National Human Rights Commission when it first visited Gujarat in the third week of March 2002. This was the first film to be made on the state sponsored carnage and many independent film-makers have used clips from the over the 100 hours of footage he filmed. Produced by Drishti Media Collective.

The Drishti Media Collective not only documents people's struggles, but also actively engages communities in the documentation of their struggles. The collective helps communities to use media as a means to articulate their resistance to structures of oppression, to communicate an alternative vision, to put forth their dreams and aspirations.