By Abdul Gani, TwoCircles.net,
Guwahati: Renowned film critic and director of documentary film Boliya Pitair Sohoki Sotal (A Duet with the River God), Altaf Mazid on Monday handed over a chaque of Rs 1.25 lakh to Uttar Anchalik Dong Bandh Samity, the body which has been looking after the man-made cannels to channelize the water from the river Pagladia towards the villages since 1954.
Boliya Pitair Sohoki Sotal (A Duet with the River God) is a documentary which traces the lifestyle of around 6.5 lakh people of 126 villages on the northern part of river Brahmaputra along the Indo-Bhutan international border of Assam.
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Filmmaker Altaf Mazid (c) handing over the cheque to the representatives Uttar Anchalik Dong Bandh Samity at Guwahati Press Club on Monday.
These people still continue to struggle with river Pagladia (tributary of Brahmaputra) for water for their day to day affair got a boost as the filmmaker donated the sum for the wellbeing of the locality which was fetched from the national award.
“We are encouraged by the move of the film unit. Their gesture means a lot to us. Our way of life has been like this for ages and there is hardly any scheme from the government in this regard. So, we people have been doing this work of blocking the river in the mid way to bring the water towards our villages,” said Somnath Gautam, one of the members of the samity.
Most villagers are living on these places for several decades and they believe the river to be a living God called Pagla Baba. Round the year, the people remain engaged in pushing the river down south, contrary to its main course of west to east. They depend on the river water for drinking, household purposes, irrigation, etc.
The filmmaker Altaf Mazid has taken recourse of Suren Bodo, a local, his wife and three children to tell the story. It's about the prayers offered to the river god and the simplicity of village life. Besides, it's about life without water and at the same time life that resolves around water every moment. The 125 minute film was shot for 13 months from December 2006 to December 2007 covering four seasons of the river.
“We were surprised to see the amount of hard labour these people do every day for water. They are really praiseworthy and I feel they should be awarded for their dedication. Though, we could do nothing for them we thought of giving the money which we got from the national award. We also feel great to have known them,” said Altaf Mazid. The film had won Best Anthropological Film in National Film Awards 2008.
The film was made under the banner Unknown Films and was produced by Altaf Mazid, Zabeen Ahmed and Susanta Roy.
[Photo credit: Abdul Gani]
