Rural women speaking their mind on camera: This is a compelling story that needs a wider audience
The Indian Express stands head and shoulders above any other mainstream English newspaper in India. The newspaper’s editors wrote an evocative piece last week on the remaking of India: “A film about the grassroots news organisation Khabar Lahariya has become the first from India to be nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Documentary Feature category.… an additional reason for celebrating the nomination of Writing with Fire is its subject: Directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh, the film offers a window into the life and work of the Dalit women who run Khabar Lahariya, and the obstacles they overcome — from unhappy husbands and unfriendly crowds to lack of funds and inexperience with technology — as they report on issues that matter the most to the communities they serve.
Twenty years after it was born as a newspaper, first published in Uttar Pradesh’s Bundelkhand region, Khabar Lahariya continues to challenge popular notions about what journalism in India could and should be and for whom it is meant. The women who work at the organisation— which made a successful digital-first pivot in 2016 — have to wage a constant battle with the prejudices of caste and gender to pursue and bring to light stories of administrative neglect, crimes against women. In doing so, they frequently put their lives on the line — not just for asking tough questions or being out at all hours, often in hostile environments, but also simply for being Dalit women.
At a time when even a section of journalists working under relatively easier and more privileged circumstances have turned away from the stories that matter, it is heartening to know that the women of Khabar Lahariya carry on undaunted. Since 2002, they’ve worked hard to spotlight issues and stories that rarely get attention. That the world should now watch and honour Khabar Lahariya’s own story is only right.”
You might also want to visit the Khabar Lahariya website (https://khabarlahariya.org/) and the Wikipedia page (https://en.wikipedia.org/