Should MAMI Have Taken A Stand & Screened The Pakistani Film Anyway?

“Jago Hua Savera” (The Day Shall Dawn) is said to be the only neo-realist cinema to come out of Pakistan from that era. Made in 1959 in Undivided Pakistan (Bangladesh today), it was a story of fishermen and their exploitation who have just one dream--to own their own boat. Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indian artists came together to make this the popular movie it was and it was also selected as Pakistan’s entry for the Oscars though ultimately, it didn’t get nominated.
Restored by Kiran Rao and screened at Cannes Film Festival, the movie was to appear in the 18th MAMI Film Festival under the Restored Classics Section (a category we’ve grown to love over the years) but this is no longer happening as of yesterday. The week-long festival that begins on 20th October with over 180 films from 54 countries to be screened has decided not to show the movie amid rising threats of protests. “Given the current situation, the Jio MAMI 18th Mumbai Film Festival with Star has decided not to programme ‘Jago Hua Savera’ as part of the Restored Classics Section,” organisers of the festival said in a statement.

Unsurprisingly to those following the frightening rise of jingoistic ‘outrage’ against our neighbouring country, it was a ‘permission to protest’ letter filed by Sangharsh Foundation in Amboli Police station that served as a catalyst for the organisers’ decision. Warning of “flared outrage” and a gathering of protestors outside Infiniti mall in Andheri, we tracked down Prithvi Mhaske, founder and president of the foundation, to understand his motivations for filing the letter, and his response to the festival’s reaction.
“We sought the police permission to protest against the screening of this movie as it hurts our national sentiments. Our soldiers are dying at the borders, how can we eat popcorn and ice-creams and sit in an air conditioned cinema hall to watch a Pakistani movie? India has always tried to have diplomatic relations with Pakistan but when that country doesn’t want it, why are we supporting them? We can’t let the government decide everything because they can’t do much. As general public, even if we can’t go to the border we can at least express our solidarity with our soldiers. We are sending them a message that we are with them. I lost my friend in the Kargil war and I know what it feels like. When Pakistan doesn’t care then why do we? We don’t need them,” he told Homegrown.

Mhaske started the foundation five years ago to fight injustice and corruption in local governing bodies. “We help people with MHADA, BMC, collectors office, government hospital issues and expose corruption in these places,” he explains. In the years since its inception, he and his colleagues have filed quite a few complaints and say that they have received favourable responses on many occasions. They filed the letter on Saturday and sought permission to protest. “We are very happy that they understood our feelings and sentiments and respected our views. We will send them a thank you letter and cancel our permission letter at the police station,” he said. When asked about the people who were looking forward to watching the movie, he has the same knee-jerk response we’ve come to expect from many who refuse to offer up logical reasons or solutions for their anger. “Those who want to watch a Pakistani movie can go to Pakistan to watch it.”
The irony of the situation is lost only on those ready to protest at the slightest hint of the word Pakistan, without taking any context into account. In truth, the film had many famous Indian and Pakistani literary giants working together when it was made and is a testament to both country’s rich histories and talents. “Jago Hua Savera would have been the piece de resistance of the festival. The 1959 film, directed by A.J. Kardar, has screenplay by revolutionary poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz based on an original story by Bengali writer Manik Bandopadhay. It won a top award at the first Moscow Film Festival in 1959 and was also Pakistan’s entry to the Oscars for the best foreign film. A confluence of talent from East Pakistan, West Pakistan and India (Timir Baran co-composed the music with Nauman Taseer), the highlight of the film is an outstanding performance by Tripti Mitra (of the Indian People’s Theatre Association),” reported the Hindu.
However, the truly frightening aspect about this entire incident is neither Mhaske’s views or his foundation’s tactics, it is MAMI’s decision to cower to their ‘permission to protest’ at all. Now hosting its 18th festival, playing host to legends of world cinema in Mumbai, the festival has solid capital backing them and endorsements from powerhouses in hospitality, media and entertainment industries. It speaks of a truly toxic atmosphere in the country if a single letter filed by a five-year-old NGO can make them cancel a screening, not to mention, unlikely. Many Indians continue to enjoy poetry by Faiz and the movie has Indian artists playing many roles. Considering the fact that the movie released in 1959 and was being shown after being restored, it is safe to assume that it did not have any commercial or profit-making agenda behind it either, so for anyone who believes it might be supporting Pakistan’s economy in anyway, it isn’t a concrete argument.
Is the environment of fear getting the better of the most powerful medium of communication in the country? Do the political outfits don’t or can’t let people to decide for themselves if they want to see, praise, criticize or have discussions about the movie?

The hostility towards Pakistan after the Uri attacks has affected the entertainment industry in varied ways over the past few weeks. Raj Thackeray gave an ultimatum to Pakistani artists to leave India and said that MNS would not let their movies release. Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) decided to ban Pakistani artists from Indain entertainment industry till the relations between Delhi and Islamabad stabilized. NDTV reported that, “The decision by the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association (COEA) applies to single screen cinemas in four states and is likely to affect the release of movies “Ae Dil Hai Mushkil”, “Dear Zindagi” and “Raees.” Anurag Kashyap asked PM Narendra Modi to apologise to the country for visiting Pakistan. Many Pakistani joints have also refused to screen Indian films.
When we are consistently told that art doesn’t have borders, “the current situation” makes us realize that maybe it does come with terms and conditions. The question is whether protestors have asked themselves what a movie about fishermen in Dhaka living in 1959 have to do with soldiers in Uri and diplomatic talks between India and Pakistan?
Interestingly, at the press conference of MAMI earlier this month when Kiran Rao was asked if any Pakistani film would be screened at the festival and in the event of it being so, if there would be any concerns keeping in mind the current political atmosphere, the producer answered in negative, Kiran said “The short answer to it is no.”
The fact that a man named Prithvi Mhaske was barely known before this controversy says a lot about how the threat of possible violence or discomfort through sloganeering and protest runs deep today. Is it the failure of the entertainment industry for paying too much attention to naysayers or their disbelief in the justice system to protect them and their rights that doesn’t let a film about fishermen be screened? For now, the moral police can rejoice.

Feature Image Courtesy: Indian Express