Life and Times of a Rat-Killer

When he was in his twenties,Behram Harda dreamed of seeing himself on the big screen,as a Bollywood dancer. However,Harda — on his father’s insistence — applied for a government job to earn a steady income. His hunt for a suitable government job led him to undertake a test to see how many rats he could kill in a designated amount of time. Harda passed the test,and has since then,spent three decades coming out after midnight — equipped with a stick,a sack and a quota of rats to kill.

Now,Harda is a supervisor in the department of rat-killers,and has also fulfilled his dream of being seen on the big screen. The Rat Race,a documentary on rat-killers,has Harda playing the lead. It will be released in PVR and BIG Cinemas as part of the Indian Documentary Foundation’s attempt to promote these themes to a commercial audience. “The documentary traces the journey of the rat-killers of our city,many of who had bigger and better dreams,like Harda,but opted for the stability of a government job,” says filmmaker Miriam Menacherry. “The kind of stories and adventures they have are gritty,but with a sense of humour. I’m really looking forward to seeing how the commercial multiplex audience takes to it,” he adds.