The penultimate
day of the festival witnessed
the screening of The Forgotten Hero by Shyam Benegal. This coincides with the
125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. India’s formidable
freedom fighter, who said “Tum mujhekhoon do, main tumhe azadi dunga” (Give me
blood and I will give you freedom), was a man of action. In the fight against
the British rule, he called upon the youth of the country to come together and
fight for Independence. The 220-minute Hindi epic war biographical war film depicts
Netaji’s life in Nazi Germany during 1941–1943, in Japanese-occupied Asia
during 1943–1945, and the events leading to the formation of Azad Hind Fauj. It
also includes his life’s story in flashback sequences.
Speaking about the
special screening, festival director Chaitanya Prasad said “Netaji remains one
of the most beloved national heroes and a towering icon of India’s freedom
struggle. The screening of The Forgotten Hero has been scheduled to honour and
remember Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s indomitable personality and selfless
service to the nation. On the 125th birth anniversary of the great freedom
fighter, we fondly remember Netaji’s unparalleled contribution to the country.”
It was also the day
when an important film Justice Delayed but Delivered was screened. Kamakhya
Narayan Singh, Director of the film said the 15-minute Hindi documentary film
showed how a person stakes claim to his constitutional rights. He said I feel
proud of what we did through this documentary. The short documentary tells the
story of struggle and hope of Radhika Gill and Rashmi Sharma, both belonging to
the Valmiki community in J&K. The film revolves around the abrogation of
Article 370 of the constitution.” Radhika and Rashmi were both victims of
discrimination due to Article 35A of the Indian Constitution, which provided
special rights and privileges to ‘permanent residents’ of Jammu and Kashmir.
Their predicaments end in the year 2019 when Article 370 is abrogated and
Article 35A deleted from the Constitution of India, thereby conferring all the
rights which they deserved since birth”.
He
emphasised that the right of every citizen in the country needed to be met as
it is guaranteed under the Constitution. He pointed out that justice was not
prevailing in J&K when Article 370 was in force and the citizens there were
not enjoying many constitutional provisions.
