Tag Archives: Jalal Ud Din Baba-Kashmiri Film Maker

Kashmiri film bags 3rd prize at India International Science Film Festival

JAMMU & KASHMIR :

Srinagar:

“Tulla Dozing The Bull”, a documentary shot by Kashmiri filmmaker Jalal Ud Din Baba at Zojila has won the 3rd best film award at India International Science Film Festival (IISFF 2017).

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Zojila is a high mountain pass in Jammu and Kashmir, located on the National Highway 1D between Srinagar and Leh in the western section of the Himalayan mountain range.

The documentary film narrates the life of Anayatullah Khan, 45 nicknamed Tulla who was born as a special kid to a shepherd family at Sonamarg. Tulla is unable to hear and speak. But Tulla is well prepared for such eventualities. He was born and brought up under the circumstances where life and its necessities teach a harder lesson in practice, sweat and blood.

Tulla is bulldozer driver and works at the Zojila pass to clear boulders, fifty feet high snow avalanches, cutting mountain patches, under the shooting stones so as to open the Srinagar-Leh National Highway after the six months of winter. He is a frontman earthmover operator.

“Tulla has never been to school for basics, brought up as a deprived and unprivileged boy without two natural inevitable abilities of a normal human being. Having restricted communicational ability and understanding, without which human skill, capability, capacity, aptitude, knack, proficiency, power, talent and aptitude becomes contemptible, unfit and unsavoury but Tulla is altogether diverse, special and praiseworthy, miles ahead of normally privileged human beings. His story is that of unmatched strength, brilliance and courage,” Jalal Ud Din Baba told TCN.

The documentary has won 3rd Best Film Award Competitive Film Category (A) for its green activism, film mastery, the remarkable art of storytelling, treatment and rare maturity of the filmmaker in his ability to trail the daily activity of his specially-abled protagonist Anaytullah Khan at Zojila.

The function at Delta Auditorium and Rosette Convention Centre National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM) Campus, Anna University, Chennai on Sunday October 15.

source: http://www.twocirlces.net / Two Circles / Home> Indian Muslims / by TwoCircles.net , Staff Reporter / October 18th, 2017

18-year-old ragpicker Bilal becomes example for Kashmiri boys

Laharwarpora (Bandipora District)  , KASHMIR :

Srinagar :

It was a day of 18 year old Bilal Dar alias Billa of Laharwarpora of Bandipora district on Sunday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned his name in Mann Ki Baat on radio address.

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Bilal Dar was 14 year old when he started earning his living by picking up waste from the Wular Lake in Bandipora district of north Kashmir in 2013.

Bilal’s father Mohammad Ramzan Dar, who also a Ragpicker, died in 2003 due to cancer and he took to collecting plastic trash and other waste material from the Wular lake which would fetch him Rs 150-200 per day, which helped him financially support his mother Mughali Appa and two sisters.

According to Srinagar Municipal commissioner Dr. Shafkat Khan , Bilal used to collect over 12,000 kg trash annually till this day from the Lake which besides offered him livelihood, helped Lake to get rid of pollution caused due to garbage thrown in the lake by the residents living near the Wular Lake, he added.

“I used to take somebody’s boat in the wee hours of every morning and collect the rags from the Lake and which would fetch me some money after selling the same to trash dealers in the market,” Bilal Dar told TOI.

It was basically documentary produced by one Kashmiri film maker Jalal-u-Din Baba which depicted the life of Bilal Dar . The documentary won several awards in Mumbai and in the US at film festivals, according to producer Baba.

“Now we have appointed Dar as brand ambassador of the Srinagar Municipal Corporation. He will be given a special uniform and a vehicle to go and meet people in srinagar’s commercial and residential areas, to tell people the story of his work in Wular. This will help sensitise urban residents to understand value of environmental issues, cleanliness and garbage disposal,” Dr Shafkat Khan said.

Bilal Dar said, “I am very happy today that my work even acknowledged by the no less than the prime minister of India Modi.”

While Tassaduq Mufti, brother CM mehbooba Mufti gave me a boat for collection of garbage from the lake, state government gave Rs.50,000 for construction of house. Though this is meagre amount to build a house yet I am satisfied with whatever, help the government provided me, Bilal Dar said.

The world famous wular lake is on the verge of dying due to dumping of toxic debris, plastic, carcasses and much more.The Lake has reduced from 273 km to just 72 km of water expanse.

Ironically, the present state BJP minister for Forest and environment ministry Lal Singh has stopped the funds allocated by the GOI for its conservation, the forest officials disclosed.

Soon after his father’s death in 2003 Bilal had worked as a mechanic at an auto-repair shop and then as a helping hand at a tea shop but continued unrest in Kashmir valley forced him to take to the job of Rag picking inside the Wullar, Bilal recalled.

Bilal features in a documentary ‘Saving The Savior – Story Of A Kid And Wular Lake’ produced and directed by Jalal-u-Din Baba.

Bilal Dar thanked Prime Minister , who mentioned his name in his Mann ki Baat on Radio.

Dar however, a appealed to PM Modi to provide him a job as his family did not have any regular source of income.

PM Modi on Sunday addressed the nation on the third anniversary of his Mann ki Baat radio programme, saying an ideological movement is needed to make cleanliness a norm across the country. This was the 36th episode of Mann Ki Baat.

During the address, PM also lauded Kashmiri youth Dar’s effort for cleaning up Wular lake in Bandipora district of north Kashmir.

source:  http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News> India / by M. Saleem Pandit / TNN / September 24th, 2017