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Anand Patwardhan

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Anand Patwardhan
Patwardhan in 2012
Born (1950-02-18) 18 February 1950 (age 75)
Bombay, Bombay State, India
Alma materUniversity of Mumbai (BA)
Brandeis University (BA)
McGill University (MA)
OccupationFilmmaker
Websitepatwardhan.com

Anand Patwardhan (/ˈɑːnənd pʌtˈwɑːrdən/; born 18 February 1950) is an Indian documentary filmmaker known for his socio-political, human rights-oriented films. Some of his films explore the rise of religious fundamentalism, sectarianism and casteism in India, while others investigate nuclear nationalism and unsustainable development.[1][2][3] Notable films include Bombay: Our City (1985), In Memory of Friends (1990), In the Name of God (1992), Father, Son, and Holy War, A Narmada Diary (both 1995), War and Peace (2002) Jai Bhim Comrade (2011), Reason (2018) and The World is Family (2023), which have won national and international awards.

Biography

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Patwardhan speaking in ViBGYOR Film Festival 2011

Patwardhan was born on 18 February 1950, in Bombay, Bombay State.[4] He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature at Mumbai University in 1970, a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology at Brandeis University in 1972[5] and a Master of Arts in Communications at McGill University in 1982.[6][7] He is a member of the Oscar Academy.[8]

Films

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Patwardhan during a screening of Ram ke Naam at Kollam

Virtually all of Patwardhan's documentary films have faced censorship from the Indian government, eventually being cleared after legal action. His film Bombay: Our City was shown on TV after a four-year court case,[9] while Father, Son, and Holy War (1995) was adjudged in 2004 as one of 50 most memorable international documentaries of all time by DOX, Europe's leading documentary film magazine. Father, Son, and Holy War was shown on India's National Network, Doordarshan, only in the year 2006, 11 years after its making, after a prolonged court battle that lasted 10 years and ended with the nation's Supreme Court ordering the network to telecast the film without any cuts.[10]

The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), refused to certify his next film, War and Peace, released in 2002. The board demanded 21 cuts before it would be certified.[11] Patwardhan took the government to court, leading to the film being banned for over a year.[12] However, after a court battle, Patwardhan won the right to screen his film without a single cut.[13][14][15] As with his previous films, Patwardhan also successfully fought to force a reluctant national broadcaster, Doordarshan, to show this film on their national network. It was commercially released in multiplexes in 2005.[16]

His 2011 documentary, Jai Bhim Comrade, was based on a police firing incident against Dalits at Ramabai Colony in Mumbai in 1997. The film, which took 14 years to complete, is considered by many to be a watershed in Patwardhan's long career.[17] In 2013, the Sheffield International Film Festival honoured Patwardhan with an Inspiration Award.[18] In 2014, the Mumbai International Film Festival honoured him with the V. Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Award.[19][20]

Upon being asked in a BFI interview to deliver a message for future documentary filmmakers, Patwardhan famously replied: "No message really. Do it only if it burns when you don't."[21]

Political views

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As a student, Patwardhan was an activist, involved in the Anti-Vietnam War movement, United Farm Workers Union and Bihar Movement.[5][7] In December 2023, alongside 50 other filmmakers, Patwardhan signed an open letter published in Libération demanding a ceasefire and an end to the killing of civilians amid the 2023 Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, and for a humanitarian corridor into Gaza to be established for humanitarian aid, and the release of hostages.[22][23][24]

Filmography

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Films

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Year Original title English title Ref.
1971 क्रान्ति की तरंगें Waves of Revolution [25]
1978 ज़मीर के बंदि Prisoners of Conscience [25]
1981 ਉਥਾਨ ਦਾ ਵੇਲਾ A Time to Rise [26]
1985 हमारा शहर Bombay: Our City [27]
1990 उन मित्रों की याद प्यारी In Memory of Friends [28]
1992 राम के नाम In the name of God [29]
1995 नर्मदा डायरी A Narmada Diary [30]
पितृ, पुत्र और धर्मयुद्ध Father, Son and Holy War [31]
1998 Fishing: In the Sea of Greed — [32]
2002 जंग और अमन War and Peace
2012 जय भीम कॉम्रेड Jai Bhim Comrade
1988 विवेक Reason
2023 The World is Family — [33]

Short films

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Year Title Ref.
1996 OCCUPATION: MILL WORKER [34]
2009 Children of Mandala [34]

Music videos

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Year Title Ref.
1996 "We Are Not Your Monkeys" [25]
1998 "Ribbons for Peace" [34]
2006 “images you didn’t see” [34]

References

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  1. ^ Interview Tehelka 13 October 2007.
  2. ^ 'Michael Moore of India', screening and Interview, University of California, Berkeley 13 October 2004.
  3. ^ Silverdocs Documentary Film Festival Archived 26 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine American University School of Communication 16 June 2004.
  4. ^ "Interview with Indian director Anand Patwardhan". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
  5. ^ a b "About Anand". patwardhan.com.
  6. ^ "Manas: Culture, Indian Cinema-Anand Patwardhan". ucla.edu. Archived from the original on 13 January 2003.
  7. ^ a b "The Films of Anand Patwardhan". Icarus Films, New York. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008.
  8. ^ Kilday, Gregg (29 June 2017). "Academy invites record 774 new members; 39 percent female, 30 percent people of color". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  9. ^ "Tehelka - The People's Paper". tehelka.com. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012.
  10. ^ Article Title[usurped] Father, Son and Holy War] The Frontline, The Hindu, September 2006.
  11. ^ Waldman, Amy (24 December 2002). "Filmmaker's Battle to Tell India's Story in India". The New York Times.
  12. ^ Censorship and Litigation
  13. ^ "Alone against India's nuclear nationalism", BBC News, 12 August 2003.
  14. ^ Director Interview BBC Four, 4 August 2003.
  15. ^ Film Review BBC Four, 2002.
  16. ^ War and Peace hits the box office for the first time in India Tehelka, 25 June 2005.
  17. ^ "Dubai International Film Festival". Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
  18. ^ "Sheffield Doc/Fest: Sheffield International Documentary Festival". 6 February 2015. Archived from the original on 6 February 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  19. ^ Pawar, Ypgesh (1 February 2014). "Anand Patwardhan to get V Shantaram award at Mumbai International Film Festival". DNA. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  20. ^ "Dr. V. Shantaram Lifetime Achievement Awardees | Mumbai International Film Festival". Mumbai International Film Festival. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Portraits of India: interview with Anand Patwardhan". BFI. Interviewed by Georgia Korossi. 21 February 2013.
  22. ^ "Gaza : des cinéastes du monde entier demandent un cessez-le-feu immédiat". Libération (in French). 28 December 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  23. ^ Newman, Nick (29 December 2023). "Claire Denis, Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Kiyoshi Kurosawa, Christian Petzold, Apichatpong Weerasethakul & More Sign Demand for Ceasefire in Gaza". The Film Stage. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  24. ^ "Directors of cinema sign petition for immediate ceasefire". The Jerusalem Post. 31 December 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  25. ^ a b c "Retrospective in Paris for Indian filmmaker". Times of India. 4 March 2013.
  26. ^ "Farmworker protests in 'A Time to Rise' film, talk at Surrey Art Gallery". Peach Arch News. 22 October 2024.
  27. ^ Virani, Sabah (29 June 2024). "Anand Patwardhan: Demolitions continue because the city makes space only for the wealthy". Hindustan Times.
  28. ^ "In Memory of Friends". patwardhan.com.
  29. ^ Pal, Deepanjana (22 March 2017). "Ram ke Naam: The History Of Ayodhya's Ram Mandir". News Laundry.
  30. ^ "A Narmada Diary". patwardhan.com.
  31. ^ Stratton, David (11 February 1995). "Father, Son and Holy War". Variety.
  32. ^ "Fishing: In the Sea of Greed". patwardhan.com.
  33. ^ "In Anand Patwardhan's The World is Family, personal histories merge with freedom struggle". The News Minute. 5 August 2024.
  34. ^ a b c d "Five Films". patwardhan.com.
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Websites on Anand Patwardhan's work

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Interviews

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Writings

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Reviews

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Video clips

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