As a part of their regular film screening session, Through Her Eyes initiative, jointly arranged by the Goethe-Institut and the International Film Initiative of Bangladesh (IFIB), screened two documentary films at the institut's auditorium in Dhanmondi.
The films, Depannita - A Lady with Versatile Talents and My Protest, both directed by Reshmi Ahmed, were shown on Sunday, followed by a Q&A discussion session. The Q&A session was moderated by National Award winning documentary film-maker Shabnam Ferdousi.
Depannita- A lady with versatile talents is about Depannita Monjulika Chakma who took the bold, and unusual step of developing traditional looms as an industry in the ‘60. She became a role model for local tribal woman.
My Protest is a first person narrative documentary which attempts to document the major political events of Bangladesh after the Liberation War in a chronological order.
It also highlights the Shahbag Movement, and Ganajagoron Mancha.
When Sabnam Ferdousi asked the director if she was a little biased in the portrayal of political events in Bangladesh after the independence war, Reshmi Ahmed replied: "I don't think so, I tried to document what I saw."
Many in the audience raised questions on the issue of bias in the documentary. An audience member asked the director a similar question, as to how truthful she was towards the historical events of Bangladesh before 1975, she avoided the question.
Through Her Eyes gives film enthusiasts, film students, academics, film professionals, funding agencies, broadcasters, rights groups, and journalists a regular opportunity to watch films by women film-makers currently working in Bangladesh, and to interact with them directly at the end of the screening.
