Mahesh Bhatt and Vinta Nanda of the NGO ACEE – The Third Eye, in order to mark the one-year anniversary of the Global Centers for Health & Development, brought together diverse filmmakers, Nigerian
director of note Tunde Kelani, and Oscar-nominated American producer
Stuart Sender got together to discuss health issues in global cinema.
Directors Kalpana Lajmi and Barnali Ray Shukla, Aimee Corrigan of GIST,
Ravi Walia - producer of A Prayer for Rain, Chris Dzialo of HH&S
among others for a discussion on Health in Global Cinema.
Ravi
Walia whose A Prayer of Rain consists of Interwoven stories of people
in India and US as they face dilemmas of life together said, “A
Prayer for Rain” is a story that needed to be told. It is about the
Bhopal Gas tragedy that happened 30 years ago and has not yet achieved
closure. We made this film based on the worst industrial disaster India
has ever faced so that we can bring to attention the plight of the
people at the time and also the current state of Bhopal where the
sufferings continue even today in other forms and justice has not yet
been delivered."
Mahesh
Bhatt said "The three largest film industries of the world have come
together to share and learn from each other. Suffering is what touches
all of us in similar ways and empathy is what binds all of humanity
together. Filmmakers are sensitive to the pain and respond to this
suffering through their craft. What makes this group special is their
commitment to adding socially relevant elements to mainstream cinema."
"The
job of a filmmaker is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the
comfortable", commented well-known Hollywood director Stuart Sender.
"The
Global Center Summit is an opportunity for Hollywood, Bollywood and
Nollywood to come together and address the most pressing health and
social issues faced by the different communities of the world, enthused
host Vinta Nanda.
"We
are the world, and the world is us. When one makes a film, one has to
put in ones’ best effort as we never know where it might reach. We hope
to collaborate with and learn from the Indian film industry," added
acclaimed Nigerian director Tunde Kelani.
"The
field reality in India is different from what we can imagine from an
urban context. Women in rural India are changing. They are taking charge
of their lives and working towards a collective consciousness leading
to their own empowerment," said acclaimed director Kalpana Lajmi.
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