Bangladesh Documentary Council has arranged a screening of internationally acclaimed Indian documentary film maker Supriyo Sen’s film Hope Dies Last in War at the auditorium of Bangladesh Short Film Forum in Shahbag on August 29 at 5:30pm.
After the screening, Supriyo Sen will take part in a question and answer session with the audience. The 80-minute-long film won the President’s Gold Medal (Swarna Kamal) for best documentary in India in 2007.
The prisoner of war (POW) documentary focuses on a single, incredible fact: The two-week Indo-Pakistani conflict of 1971 left dozens of Indian prisoners of war unaccounted for who are presumed to be in Pakistani detention. This intermittently eye-opening film revolves around a group of POWs that are often overlooked, if not outright forgotten, overshadowed by more high-profile or current soldiers in the same situation.
When the dust settled in late 1971, Bangladesh gained independence and India captured 100,000 military personnel and civilians at the time of Pakistan’s surrender. They were eventually released, but their Indian counterparts, 51 to be exact, remain in custody till date.
A leading indie film maker from India, Supriyo Sen has made several internationally acclaimed feature and short documentaries like Way Back Home, Hope Dies Last in War and Wagah. His films have been screened at festivals including Sundance, Los Angeles, Busan, Sydney, Traibeca, IDFA, Hot Docs, Nyon, Sheffield and Yamagata.
