National award to Goonga Pahelwan, a film on most accomplished deaf athlete made by Gujarat NGO

By Our Representative
In a major victory for Gujarat's activist film makers, "Goonga Pehelwan", a documentary on the life and struggle of Virender Singh, one of India's most accomplished deaf athletes, has been adjudged as the best debut film award in the non-feature category for the 62nd National Film Awards for the Year 2014. Directed by Mit Jani, Vivek Chaudhary, and Prateek Gupta, the documentary, released in 2013, is an attempt to bring to light the "unequal treatment" from the government and the society.
Produced by NGO Drishti media, Ahmedabad, the award for "Goonga Pehelwan" was announced alongside that for some key feature films like "Queen", "Haider" "Mary Kom" and "Court". Drishti's Debarun Dutta believes this "is a huge leap forward for not just us but also Virender and everyone else attached to this mission we're working on. Goonga Pehelwan is up there with the likes of Haider, Mary Kom and Queen."
Virender won Gold at Melbourne Deaflimpics in 2005, Silver World Deaf Wrestling Championship in Armenia in 2008, Bronze at Deaflympics in Taiwan in 2009, Bronze at World Deaf Wrestling Championship in Bulgaria in 2012, and Gold at Deaflympics in Bulgaria in 2013.
Dutta says, "When we started working on 'Goonga Pahelwan', one of the major reasons that spurred us on was the divide that existed between able-bodied athletes and those who were differently-abled, like Virender. One such debilitating factor was the exclusion of events for the differently-abled from being eligible for cash awards -- an unjust clause that existed as concrete evidence of discrimination."
Dutta claims, thanks to the efforts by Drishti and its documentary, the Government of India in January 2015 agreed to bring about a change in its sports policy by bringing events in which physically challenged sportspersons participated at par with the rest.
"It means that winners at the Deaflympics, the Paralympics and all other sporting events for the differently-abled will also receive cash rewards. This move validates a massive chunk of the efforts we poured into making Goonga Pehelwan", he said.
According to him, "When the film began, one of the two major objectives of the film was to help Virender compete at the national games, which is the first step towards qualification for international tours and subsequently the Olympics."
Based on interviews with Virender all those who surrounded him, including his family members, the film ultimately helped see "Virender take the mat with non-hearing impaired athletes with the provision of referees that will provide him visual and tactile cues, a day that all of us have patiently waited for, fought for and contributed for."

An important aim the documentary has been to garner support and make possible Virender Singh’s desire to represent India at the Rio Olympics 2016.

Comments

Bill Gates as funder, author, editor, adviser? Data imperialism: manipulating the metrics

By Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD* When Mahatma Gandhi on invitation from Buckingham Palace was invited to have tea with King George V, he was asked, “Mr Gandhi, do you think you are properly dressed to meet the King?” Gandhi retorted, “Do not worry about my clothes. The King has enough clothes on for both of us.”

Stagnating wages since 2014-15: Economists explain Modi legacy for informal workers

By Our Representative Real wages have barely risen in India since 2014-15, despite rapid GDP growth. The country’s social security system has also stagnated in this period. The lives of informal workers remain extremely precarious, especially in states like Jharkhand where casual employment is the main source of livelihood for millions. These are some of the findings presented by economists Jean Drèze and Reetika Khera at a press conference convened by the Loktantra Bachao 2024 campaign.

Displaced from Bangladesh, Buddhist, Hindu groups without citizenship in Arunachal

By Sharma Lohit Buddhist Chakma and Hindu Hajongs were settled in the 1960s in parts of Changlang and Papum Pare district of Arunachal Pradesh after they had fled Chittagong Hill Tracts of present Bangladesh following an ethnic clash and a dam disaster. Their original population was around 5,000, but at present, it is said to be close to one lakh.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah* The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual.

Magnetic, stunning, Protima Bedi 'exposed' malice of sexual repression in society

By Harsh Thakor* Protima Bedi was born to a baniya businessman and a Bengali mother as Protima Gupta in Delhi in 1949. Her father was a small-time trader, who was thrown out of his family for marrying a dark Bengali women. The theme of her early life was to rebel against traditional bondage. It was extraordinary how Protima underwent a metamorphosis from a conventional convent-educated girl into a freak. On October 12th was her 75th birthday; earlier this year, on August 18th it was her 25th death anniversary.

Joblessness, saffronisation, corporatisation of education: BJP 'squarely responsible'

Counterview Desk In an open appeal to youth and students across India, several student and youth organizations from across India have said that the ruling party is squarely accountable for the issues concerning the students and the youth, including expensive education and extensive joblessness.

'Assault on civic, academic freedom, right to dissent': TISS PhD student's suspension

By Our Representative The Mumbai-based civil rights group All India Secular Forum (AISF) has said that the suspension of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) PhD student Ramadas Prini Sivanandan (30) for two years for allegedly indulging in activities which were "not in the interest of the nation" is meant to send out the message that students and educational institutes will be targeted if they don’t align with the agenda and ideology of the ruling regime. TISS in a notice served to Ramadas has cited that his role in screening the documentary 'Ram Ke Naam' on January 26 as a "mark of dishonour and protest" against the Ram Mandir idol consecration in Ayodhya. Another incident cited in the notice was Ramadas’ participation in the protest against unfair government policies in Delhi under the banner of the Progressive Students' Forum (PSF)-TISS. TISS alleges the institute's name was "misused", which wrongfully created an impression that

Anti-Rupala Rajputs 'have no support' of numerically strong Kshatriya communities

By Rajiv Shah Personally, I have no love lost for Purshottam Rupala, though I have known him ever since I was posted as the Times of India representative in Gandhinagar in 1997, from where I was supposed to do political reporting. In news after he made the statement that 'maharajas' succumbed to foreign rulers, including the British, and even married off their daughters them, there have been large Rajput rallies against him for “insulting” the community.

Why it's only Modi ki guarantee, not BJP's, and how Varanasi has seen it up-close

"Development" along Ganga By Rosamma Thomas* I was in Varanasi in this April, days before polling began for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. There are huge billboards advertising the Member of Parliament from Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The only image on all these large hoardings is of the PM, against a saffron background. It is as if the very person of Modi is what his party wishes to showcase.

Following the 3000-year old Pharaoh legacy? Poll-eve Surya tilak on Ram Lalla statue

By Sukla Sen Located at a site called Abu Simbel in Nubia, Upper Egypt, the eponymous rock temples were created in 1244 BCE, under the orders of Pharaoh Ramesses II (1303-1213 BC)... Ramesses II was fond of showcasing his achievements. It was this desire to brag about his victory that led to the planning and eventual construction of the temples (interestingly, historians say that the Battle of Qadesh actually ended in a draw based on the depicted story -- not quite the definitive victory Ramesses II was making it out to be).

Counterview

Search This Blog