Ajyal Film Festival’s short film Shringar focuses on child labour in India’s mica mines
- 3 years ago
Shringar was listed under Ajyal’s flagship ‘Made in Qatar’ short film category presented by Ooerdoo which included 16 narratives, documentaries and reflective essays by 18 Qatari and Qatar-based filmmakers in celebration of the growing national film industry.
Out of a total of 22 feature films, 50 short films and 31 Arab films that were screened at the recently concluded eight edition of the Ajyal Film Festival, one that caught my eye was a 11-minute short film ‘Shringar’ screened at the Lusail Drive-in Cinema in Festival City.
Shringar was listed under Ajyal’s flagship ‘Made in Qatar’ short film category presented by Ooerdoo which included 16 narratives, documentaries and reflective essays by 18 Qatari and Qatar-based filmmakers in celebration of the growing national film industry.
Scripted and directed by Muhammed Nouffal with subtitles in English and Arabic, the film cleverly intermixes Indian classical dance and folklore to enrich a heart wrenching narrative that focuses on child labour in the mica mines of India.
Director Mohd Nouffal who has won several awards for his short films ‘Border’, ‘Loud Voice’ and ‘Roadside’ at other festivals, speaking exclusively to QatarDay.com remarked, “This is my first ever attempt in the Ajyal Film Festival and am delighted that it was officially screened at the event. As a part time, amateur filmmaker I started preparations for Shringar at the start of the year but unfortunately the pandemic threw all plans off-balance. I was uncertain about completing the movie in time but finally finished the production and post-production for submitting it to this year’s Ajyal Film Fest.”
Commenting on the concept behind the movie, Noufal explained, “The story of Shringar evolved when I travelling through Eastern India in 2018 and noticed that the region did not have much agricultural land or farms. Curious to know of their daily source of income, I spoke to the villagers who led me to an illegal mica mining site near their village in the Giridih District located in State of Jharkhand.
What totally shocked me was the number of children, under the age of 12 who were forced to work more than 8 hours a day, to earn a lively hood. These kids were obviously unaware of basic rights guaranteed under the Indian constitution and their decision to work was a simple choice of survival over starvation.
As a filmmaker and citizen of India, I strongly felt an urgent need to address this issue in a creative yet unique manner, in order to attract the attention of various apex bodies and get them involved to help resolve the issue, as soon as possible.”
“Shringar is not merely a short film but my voice of protest against child labour in the Indian mica mining industry and blatant abuse of children that is sadly happening even now in different parts of the world,” he concluded.
Ashmitha Mahesh a 10 year old, 5th grade student of Birla Public School brilliantly portrays a key role in the film. She is currently learning classical Indian dance and exploring possibilities of performing on staking shoes and hoverboards.
Shiringar is produced by Vimal Kumar Mani with cinematographer Jenshad Guruvayoor, choreographer Soosadima Earoni and composer Sudeep all essaying their parts to perfection.
Commenting on the Ajyal Film Festival, Noufal said, “The six day festival was unique and exciting, providing a great platform to e-meet creative filmmakers from all over the world and to watch and discuss their film thoughts and crafts. I have recently started pre-production work for next year’s entry to the Ajyal Film Festival and promise to be back with another more socially relevant and thought provoking film.”
The recently concluded eighth edition of DFI’s Ajyal Film Festival will go down history, not only for its unique first-ever hybrid triple mix of screenings but also for the strong resilience and determination shown by the organizers, participants and the audience in making the event a grand success, despite the daunting Covid-19 pandemic hurdles and obstacles.
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