UMAR KHALID | From the Eyes of His Loved Ones
Umar Khalid, who once dreamed of playing cricket for India, now faces serious terrorism charges from the government. The vilification spurred by media trials reached its peak with a chilling assassination attempt. He's been in prison for 3.5 years as of March 2024, highlighting a worrying crackdown on dissent in India. This is his story, as told by his loved ones.
WHAT MAKES A ‘HOME’ | Demolition Drives in Delhi
The video delves into the lives of Delhi's slum dwellers, whose homes perpetually face the threat of demolition. In a recent case, on May 19, 2023, residents of Priyanka Gandhi Camp in Vasant Vihar, Delhi, received official notices from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to vacate the land by June 15, 2023. Despite legal battles fought by the PG camp residents, their ‘Jhuggis’ (slums) were ultimately demolished. Between April 1 and July 27, 2023, Delhi witnessed 49 demolition drives. In 2023, at least 1600 homes have been destroyed and about 2,50,000 are homeless in India’s Capital. This story is about the plight of those who become homeless overnight.
BREATHLESS IN DELHI | The Human Cost of Air Pollution
If you are living in Delhi, you might lose 12 years of your life because of air pollution. Jyoti Lavakare Pande, an author and a journalist from Delhi, writes an open letter to highlight the intensity of pollution in Delhi. She reflects on her mother's vibrant and resilient life, filled with smiles and melodies. Her mother, Kamale Pande, a classical vocalist, was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, struggling for every breath in Delhi's pollution. She pens down her mother’s journey to raise awareness about the invisible killer looming in Delhi’s air.
SILENCING DEMOCRACY | Curbs on the ‘Right to Protest’ in The National Capital
Gulfisha Fatima, a former student turned activist from Seelampur in Delhi, was arrested by the Delhi Police in April 2020. Alongside numerous other activists who participated in the anti-CAA movement, she faced charges under anti-terror laws and was booked under the stringent UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act).
CART PULLER | Life of a Daily Wage Worker
More than 41,000 daily-wage workers died by suicide in India in 2021, as per the government?s National Crime Records Bureau, which also showed these workers form the country?s largest group among the suicide victims. This short film depicts a day in the lives of cart pullers in the national capital of Delhi.
DELHI | Through the Lens of Gender
Shreya went through panic attacks after being sexually harassed by men in Delhi, India?s national capital which is also known as the country?s most unsafe city for women. Her fear led her to look for empowerment, which she finally found. But that didn?t mean she was now safer than other women in the city.
SHOW ME THE WAY HOME
A young Rohingya man, Ali Johar, fled persecution in Myanmar?s Rakhine state and later made his way to India, as he had heard that Indian people and their government were kind-hearted. Did he, and his fellow refugees, experience that kindness?
DELHI BOUND
Munna Singh, 19, a second-generation migrant worker, is a full-time supplier of water bottles and a part-time dog walker in the slums of Govindpuri, Delhi. As he is working hard to make ends meet for his family, his life resembles that of millions of interstate migrant workers in India’s capital. Here’s a day in his life.
PORTER | Life of A Daily- Wage Worker
As railway stations now have fairly modern infrastructure and travellers use wheel trollies, the demand for porters has gone down in recent years. COVID-19 restrictions have further brought their earnings down. This first episode of a series of short films, with no dialogues …
DINNER WITH THE KAURS | Conversation with a Sikh Family
Nirmal Kaur, a Sikh woman, was just 13 years old when she witnessed her father?s killing during an anti-Sikh massacre in 1984 after the then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her two Sikh bodyguards. Thirty-eight years later, the Kaurs continue to fight for justice.
KASHMIRIYAT FRACTURED
Three decades after his brutal displacement, Rajinder Koul Premi, a Hindu from Kashmir, is still looking for answers, especially what led to the collapse of the region?s syncretic society? Will he get the answers? Will he be able to reconcile with the loss?
WHY ARE UNIVERSITIES UNDER ATTACK
Prof. Apoorvanand from Delhi University speaks to Newsreel Asia’s Asad Ashraf on the idea of university and why and how universities are under attack in India.
LIVES AT RISK
Kaazim Ahmad, a 62-year-old man, was stripped and beaten with a blunt object due to his Muslim identity in Noida city in the National Capital Region on July 4. He narrated the incident to Asad Ashraf and Surabhi Singh.