In his film Kadvi Hawa (2017), critically acclaimed filmmaker Nila Madhab Panda portrays a haunting image of India’s hinterlands where people seem to have forgotten what rain smells or feels like. His other works like feature film Kaun Kitney Paani Mein and documentary Climate’s First Orphans are searing portrayals of climate change and its contrasting scenarios—the former showing barren land and the fight for precious drops of water, and the latter a coastal village on the brink of extinction due to rising sea levels.
Addressing ground realities of climate crisis is ingrained into Panda’s school of filmmaking—also why he is one of the 11 filmmakers picked for a United Nations-backed anthology feature on climate change, to premiere later this year. The 10 others onboard are Faouzi Bensaidi (Morocco), Asa Hjorleifsdottir (Iceland), Cannes-winner Mahamat-Saleh Haroun (Chad), Salome Lamas (Portugal), Bettina Oberli (Switzerland), Shahrbanoo Sadat (Afghanistan), Silvio Soldini (Italy), Daniela Thomas (Brazil), Leon Wang (China) and Karin Williams (New Zealand).
The underlying theme being ‘interdependence, each of their stories will reflect, on multiple levels, intertwined relationships of man and the environment affected by climate change. “Whenever we speak of the impact of climate change or calamities, the focus is always on material losses. But in the long-term, it is about emotional change,” says Panda. “It is about damaged relationships and personal equations.”
Currently in post-production phase, Panda’s short film—Megha’s Divorce—is a courtroom drama starring Divya Dutta, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Chandan Anand and Manjari Fadnis. It is a poignant portrayal of a stormy marriage, against the backdrop of Delhi’s extreme air pollution. The film is based on Panda’s personal experiences and real-life stories of the toll the city’s toxic air takes on family relationships.
For over two decades, Delhi has been home to Panda, who hails from Sonepur district of Odisha. “I grew up in nature’s lap, on the banks of one of the most beautiful rivers of eastern India—the Mahanadi,” he says. The only vehicle we ever saw for a long time in the village was the rickety scooter of a doctor from the health department, he recalls. It is evident he misses the fresh air, and living in Delhi only adds to that longing.
Panda set his focus on the capital city’s air after his nine-year-old son started suffering from respiratory ailments and the doctor advised the child to not step out to play. “We worry about the air probably twice a year—during Diwali and when the smog chokes us during winter.” The rest of the year, city-folks are happy driving around in their cars and buying new ones, he says.
Cinema has the power to move people, Panda believes, and the anthology will be screened across the globe to take its message to the largest possible audience.
