New York Film Screening | A Lover's War: A Trilogy of Turmoil

Join us for the screening and discussion of 3 evocative short films by Cannes prize-winning Indian documentary filmmakers.

Wednesday, September 18
Location
The People's Forum
320 West 37th Street New York, NY 10018 United States

Film Screening| A Lover's War: A Trilogy of Turmoil

"Societies never know it, but the war of an artist with his society is a lover's war, and he does, at his best, what lovers do, which is to reveal the beloved to himself and, with that revelation, to make freedom real." ~ James Baldwin

Hello!

We’re thrilled to invite you to an evocative screening and discussion of three short films by Cannes prize-winning Indian documentary filmmakers Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya. Documenting the sharp descent into political and social turmoil over recent years, the trilogy features “Searching for Saraswati" (New York Times, 2018), "The Hour of Lynching" (The Guardian, 2019) and "The Great Abandonment" (The Guardian, 2022).

These films explore the violent majoritarian ideas that have gained traction in an era of rising polarization and their profound impact on the already vulnerable.

Our Founder, Suchitra Vijayan will be in conversation with the Cannes prize-winning Indian documentary filmmakers. We hope that this would be a unique opportunity for you, in an increasingly hostile world, to engage with the Shirley and Amit in a post-film discussion to delve deeper into the artist's role in turbulent times and the narratives that challenge and reflect our contemporary realities.

The screening is part of The Polis Project's "Dissent in Dangerous Times" public conversation series and is free and open to the public.

Reserve your tickets on Eventbrite here.

We look forward to having you join us! And as always, please consider donating to help keep our public programming free and accessible.

Meenakshi Thirukode
Director, Communications and Cultural Partnerships, The Polis Project

• The Great Abandonment (28’, 2022): The Guardian (supported by The Guardian, Field of Vision, Pulitzer Center) 

As Prime Minister Modi announces the world’s toughest, biggest, and most unbearable Covid-19 lockdown in India, 11 million migrant workers stuck without livelihood in cities are forced to walk back to their villages. As many will walk to their deaths in this unprecedented exodus from cities, can Modi's call to suffering ignite a moment of resistance and revolution?

Awards: 

• Best News Feature, Rory Peck Trust Awards, 2023

• Best English Documentary, Human Rights Press Awards - Human Rights Watch, 2023 

• Shortlist: Best Short Film, One World Media Award, 2022

• The Hour of Lynching (20’, 2019): The Guardian, Field of Vision, Pulitzer Center

Dairy farmer Rakbar Khan was lynched by cow vigilantes on the accusation of cow slaughter. His wife Asmeena must mourn his murder, while the machinery of the Hindu right wing denies it. 

Awards: 

• World Press Photo: 3rd Prize for Longform Storytelling in the Digital Storytelling Contest, 2020 

• Sandford St Martin Awards: Runners up for Journalism Award, 2020

• Searching for Saraswati (20’, 2018): India’s first Op-doc for The New York Times (supported by the Sundance Institute-MacArthur Foundation Short Film Fellowship) 

A nationalist government, an exiled farmer and a breathless priest are in pursuit of Saraswati, a mighty river that disappeared 5000 years ago and has since been found only in myth.

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Public Conversation Series: Since 2017, we have hosted over 100 events, including lectures, film screenings and conversations by some of the most critical and essential voices of dissent. Our speakers include Arundhathi Roy, Romila Thapar, Maaza Mengiste, Steven Thrasher, Mohamedou Ould Salahi, Prof. Jasbir Puar, Prof. Mona Bhan and Haley Duschinsky, Sean Jacobs, Sanjay Kak and many others.

The Polis Project - a clearing house for difficult ideas.
Research, Reportage and Resistance

The Polis Project, Inc. is a New York-based hybrid research and journalism organization that documents communities in resistance at the intersection of politics, culture and literature.

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