Not watered down!

Doom-sayers abound when any topic related to the environment crops up.

The documentary Water and a City,which is set for a Pune screening,takes a gritty look at poor urban water management

Doom-sayers abound when any topic related to the environment crops up. Temperatures are soaring,innumerable species of animals are wanly dodging extinction and natural resources are depleting quickly. But,how many of these issues really scrape one’s attention beyond a few minutes? Bengaluru-based documentary filmmaker Swati Dandekar is bringing to Pune her sharp look at the urban water quicksand in which most Indian metropolises find their feet jammed. The film explores the tenuous relationship between a city,which is an individual entity,and a natural resource,that is water. Cities have been growing at an alarming rate and the populace feels it’s their given right to indiscriminately exploit the finite resources available. This documentary is essentially about how water is governed,primarily at the hands of the agencies of the state, says Dandekar.

Government-bashing is more often than not a convenient prop through which all such initiatives prefer to shout out their ire. But,individual responsibility cannot be swept under the carpet. Dandekar says,I realised that all cities have more similarities than differences. So,if this documentary takes a micro-level look at Bengaluru,then it actually helps understand the state of water troubles and the governance-related shortcomings of most Indian cities. Though the film doesn’t comment directly on citizen responsibility,it does give indicators to affirmative action. Like,there is a story about a locality in Bengaluru that has initiated a water-harvesting project,” she adds.

The documentary has travelled to the DocMiami International Film Festival,the Alaska Film Festival,Voices from the Waters Festival,Bengaluru,and is slated to be a part of the EKOTOPFILM fest in the Slovak Republic this October. Sustainable development has united emotions throughout the world. It’s surprising how so many culturally different places can connect though this idea, Dandekar says,adding,When I look back at my work,I see a pattern developing. One of my projects studied the functioning of a small town’s local self-government. It portrayed how effective de-centralisation has been.”

Lack of awareness is aggravating an already worsening problem. A holistic approach,with both responsible citizens and powers-that-be pitching in,is the only way to go. Admittedly,the government authorities are the most difficult people to access. But,Dandekar is sanguine. I would like to believe that my work has an impact on the general psyche of the audience. The responses are always varied,but I am grateful even when a small pocket gets excited at the idea. It’s difficult to make a dent in such widespread cynicism.

(The documentary will screen on September 4,at Indradhanushya,Rajendra Nagar,at 4 pm)

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