ITS not everyday that one comes across a film whose hero is a country,and that too India. Believe it or not,it is true. For me,one of most important aspects of the story told in my film,Fire in the Blood,is that of India as a vital beacon of hope and humanity. India is the leading supplier of affordable,high-quality medicine to the world,especially to the global south, shares Punjabi-Irish filmmaker Dylan Mohan Gray,whose critically acclaimed film releases in India this October 11. A bold attempt for a debut venture,writer-director-producer-editor Grays five-year journey paid off when in January this year,Fire in the Blood became the first Indian film to get selected for the World Cinema Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival. It also had a theatrical release earlier this year in the UK and Ireland and recieved rave reviews. An intricate tale of medicine,monopoly and malice,Fire in the Blood tells the story of how Western pharmaceutical companies and governments aggressively blocked access to low-cost AIDS drugs for the countries of Africa and the global south in the years after 1996 causing millions of unnecessary deaths and the impressive group of people who decided to fight back. The film has been shot across four continents and features global figures including Bill Clinton,Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu,Peter Frost (Former Vice-President of Pfizer Inc,Pharmacia and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals),Joseph Stiglitz, activist and HIV/AIDS patient Zackie Achmat all votaries of affordable healthcare. Going back to the genesis of this film,Grays motivation to unearth the profit-driven world of pharmaceutical companies and its global impact stems from a particular news item he came across. It was about Dr Yusuf K Hamied who heads generic drug company Cipla and how he was waging a lone battle against the government-pharma nexus. Dr Hamied shot to global prominence in early 2001 when he announced that Cipla,founded on Gandhian principles of self-reliance in 1935,would supply a combination of AIDS drugs to developing countries for less than $1 a day,at a time when first-line antiretroviral (ARV) medication sold for up to more than $15,000 per patient per year, says Gray,who felt there was a bigger and much more important story to tell here. I consider myself a pretty up-to-date,well-informed person till I came across this story. The lack of affordable medicines has claimed more lives than the holocaust. The historian in me was scandalized at this crime of the century. It was not an easy film to make. I have structured it like a crime story and this meant reinventing the wheel, says the filmmaker who runs Sparkwater,his production company,and has worked with Deepa Mehta,Mira Nair,Fatih Akin and Paul Greengrass,among other filmmakers. Narrated by Academy Award winner,William Hurt,Fire in the Blood showcases how,against all odds,India continues to defend a deeply righteous,moral and humane position stating that the lives of people are more important than incremental increases in corporate profit margins. India is the undisputed hero of this monumental untold story and every single Indian should know what incredible,courageous and principled leadership our nation has shown in this vital area of human life, says Gray. Unlike Canada,he adds,where healthcare is a human right,we live in a world where healthcare is primarily viewed through a prism of economic opportunity. People are denied access to medicine which can be easily,cheaply and safely produced. Fire in the Blood can start a global conversation on that can positively impact the lives of billions,he says.
