Filmmaker Jigar Nagda, an erstwhile assistant of filmmakers Anurag Kashyap, Onir and Manish Gupta, branched out on his own to make the docu-short Aravali: The Lost Mountains under his Udaipur Pictures. The film was screened at over 50 international film festivals. Continuing his rich form in the festival circuit, his recent film Batti: A Boy Who Dreamt of Electricity won the Best Film award at the Jaipur International Film Festival 2024 and premiered at places such as the Indian Film Festival Stuttgart and Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, USA. The film will be screened at the Habitat Film Festival 2025 in Delhi on May 22.Batti is about Bheru, hailing from a tribal community in Rajasthan, who goes from pillar to post to get an electricity connection in his home. The film navigates his emotional journey as he confronts various obstacles stemming from social and economic backwardness. Jigar, who hails from a tribal pocket in Rajasthan, explains that many people in these communities are unaware of how they are exploited due to a lack of education. “I captured a fraction of this conundrum in Batti,” he notes.Jigar emphasises that their ignorance not only stifles their progress in terms of basic amenities like electricity but also affects social dynamics. He points out that while some exploit caste hierarchy, the broader issue of misogyny unites all castes, leading members of oppressed communities to be unaware of how their misogynistic tendencies continue to contribute to caste oppression. “The practice of reverse dowry in Rajasthan has exploded. The reason is the poor sex ratio, driven by the community’s aversion to female children. As the female birth rate declines, wealthier men find it easier to marry, creating pressure on families to provide dowries. This pushes them into a debt trap of affluent and ‘upper’ caste individuals, ensuring the exploitation perpetuates,” says Jigar, adding that electricity, which is supposed to be a basic need, is a luxury in these parts. “That is why Bheru (Kunal Mehta) feels it is more important to get a power connection than getting married. While the film’s crux is about a tribal man fighting to get electricity for his home, I also wanted to highlight how their apathetic condition has a multi-pronged reason. That’s why I named Rakhi Mansha’s character Anchahi (unwanted child). The girls like Anchahi who escape the guillotine of infanticide, will bear such a name and live with the trauma of not belonging,” he comments.
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