1995, English (with subtitles), 9 min

Direction: Gargi Sen

The film documents a unique experience of using video in the activities of an NGO based in Udaipur, Rajasthan.

One day people of a village near Udaipur suddenly discovered that their land was being taken over for a cement factory. They ran to Astha, a local NGO, to seek help. Astha found out from the authorities that the fertile land was declared as wasteland in the records. Nothing could convince the authorities otherwise since the factory owner was powerful.

Astha decided to record visuals of the area and the views of the people on video and show it to the Collector. After viewing the footage, the Collector was convinced that this land should not be misused for a cement factory and changed the order.

The film also weaves the story of Raju, who joined Astha as an ordinary staff, but his interest in the visual medium helped him to grow into a video practitioner.

Research and Script: Gargi Sen, Sujit Ghosh; Camera and Editing: Ranjan De