The camera saved their lives

For these young women, a life behind a camera changed their view on the world in front of it


There was a life before they went behind the camera. And now there's quite a life after it. Neha, Jyotsna, Sree, Trisha, Nita, Rima, Ayesha and Shabnam, have felt that change.
Some of these girls are helping people like Raziya, 33, and Atmadevi, 27, from Dharavi understand the power of the camera and the strength of collective action.

Recently, when people of Muslimnagar in Dharavi took out a demonstration against an official in the civil supplies department, who wouldn't issue them ration cards without a bribe, the camera became their weapon. The official had been brushing them off for months, but when he saw Ayesha, Shabnam, Raziya, and Atmadevi filming the demonstration on a handycam, he blinked. Within three months, every one of the
protestors got their ration card.

The foursome's grip on a handycam couldn't have been so confident without the help of Neha Belkar,17, their teacher. Neha, who studies commerce at a night college, and works in an office to support her mother and six siblings, wants to become a documentary film-maker.

As of now, she is helping the disadvantaged learn a new skill and find a voice. According to her, a documentary does more than a film — it reveals as much, in a shorter time. It's only been a year since Neha has learned to work the camera, but she's used it to turn her life inside out. Not only does she now teach documentary-making to several other girls, she has even judged a short film competition. But she won't tell you that.

The girls were all part of She Creates, a project started in 2007 with 25 girls from various sections of society, who were all taught to use a video camera. The project, initiated by Mam Movies, aimed to encourage the girls to use films and tell the world their story.

Jyotsna, Sree, Trisha, Nita, and Rima belong to Apne Aap Women's Collective that works with marginalised women and girls. Shabnam, Neha, and Ayesha are associated with Learn, which works with underprivileged girls from Dharavi. Last year, the girls brought out four fascinating shorts. Two of these — Muskurati Roshni and Naaz, were produced by girls from Apne Aap and Learn.

Muskurati Roshni dealt with female foeticide, something the girls had seen up close. Jyotsna said they chose the topic because it was wrong, it was the most widespread, and because, as girls, they felt hurt and ashamed.

Jyotsna, who has a way with pictures and colours, says she loves filming the sky because "the clouds play out so creatively on it". Raheen Jummani, counsellor and project director of Apne Aap, who played the expectant mother in Muskurati Roshni, is astonished with the change film has brought about in the lives of the girls. "It was completely amazing to see them behind the camera," Raheen says. "The most amazing part was how they wrote the script. Each came up with a point and almost always there was a counter-argument."

The film was shot in two days. One room in Apne Aap's office was turned into a clinic. The girls stacked up computers to make them look like a sonography machine; covered the room in white to give it a hospice feel; and even stuffed a bundle of clothes on Raheen to give her a 'stomach'. Not just filming, the project also tested their editing skills.

The material, which took up five tapes, was whittled down to one. Ultimately, it was worth all the effort. At the premier last year, Muskurati Roshni got the most accolades. When it was shown at IIM-A, everybody got up and applauded.

This year, the girls from Apne Aap are producing two more films — Smiling Angels and Aashayein. Smiling Angels captures smiles on the faces of children. Aashayein traces the girls' journey from before the camera happened to them, to life after it.

And there's a distinct difference, says Raheen. "The girls are extremely confident now, both internally and externally," she says. "They know what they are good at, their thinking power has widened, they are good enough to teach other girls, and their self-esteem has been given a boost."

That sentiment is shared by Ayesha and Shabnam from Dharavi. Not just the camera, both look great working on the laptop too, especially Shabnam, who no longer goes to school. The use of technology has also impressed upon people like Raziya the need for her own girls to be given a computer education.

After learning to make documentaries from Neha, Raziya and Atmadevi have joined Ayesha and Shabnam in using the camera and recording the unheard voices from their community.

The foursome have scripted and filmed Yeh Hai Dharavi Meri Jaan, a short on the plight of home-based workers, street vendors, and those employed in Dharavi's small units that churn out most of the jeans, zardosi and belts that twinkle from shop windows in big malls. This has also been a victory for Learn that has been working all these years to organise disadvantaged people under unions, and help them fight collectively for their rights.  

The group has evolved in other ways too, says Indira Gartenberg, project director of Learn. "I was impressed with the way they scripted the film," she says. "Their idea was to show people that happiness and creativity exist in Dharavi. They challenged the myth about slum-dwellers being lazy. They wanted to show that people from their area contribute significantly to the city's economy. Clearly, there's been a transition in their thinking."

For Ayesha, Shabnam, Raziya and Atmadevi, the two-minute short has given them an experience of a lifetime, as they peeped into homes and factories in Muslimnagar, Mukundnagar and Kumbharwada, as well as the laundry hub of Dhobighat.

It's also given them an understanding that there are people more unfortunate than them. You can hear it in Ayesha's voice. She points to the scene where a train charges in as a washerwoman puts clothes to dry beside a railway track, "We found out that people have even lost their lives because they didn't see the train coming in."
r_debjani@dnaindia.net