My film "PATHER CHUJAERI" will be screened on
the 17th of feb. that is this Sunday at 10.30 p.m on
DD1. Please watch it.
Please fwd this info to others on your mailing list

peace
Pankaj


SYNOPSIS-- THE PLAY IS ON... / PATHER CHUJAERI
How does art survive in a regime of fear? I first
encountered this question in 1999, while taking
photographs of Kashmir during that mindless war with
Pakistan. That summer, I established contact with the
National Bhand Theatre, Wathora, and the Bhagat
Theatre, Akingam, two groups that were still
performing in the traditional pather form of satire.
I returned twice in 2001, now armed with a camera.

I was encouraged by what I found: an illiterate
community has sustained a centuries-old tradition in
the face of debilitating social and cultural changes.
Although perenially intimidated by the corruption,
violence and intolerance that prevail in Kashmir, the
bhands are still affirming a commitment to their
theatre, to the critical potential of its form and
the liberating joys of performance. Faith in Sufism
has tempered their enthusiam for satire and they
identify with the collective voices of Kashmir's
freedom.

The Play is on.... follows the two groups as they
prepare for public performances, a rare phenomenon
today. For the bhands, who daily witness the erosion
of their way of life, each performance represents
both a change as well as a repetition of the same
brutal fact: that they are not free to share their
revolutionary spirit.

Credits
Director, Camera, and Editing -- Pankaj Rishi Kumar
Location Sound -- Jagan Shah
Sound MiX-- Gissy Michael
Production Manager -- Mohammad Shafi Bhat
produced by PSBT