Deprived kids’ film

A short film on child rights made by two rescued child labourers will be screened at the Auburn International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults in Sydney. The film, We See, is being screened during the festival between September 17 and 21.

We See revolves around a meeting of representatives of the countries to discuss child rights. In the process they praise their country’s achievements in the field, but in the end they realise they had hardly done anything for children.

Tapa Bhowmik (13) is cameraman and Rinku Babu Mondal (14) the director of the film. The two young achievers lost their fathers at a very young age and then had to shoulder the responsibility of running the family before being rescued by the Centre for Child Development (CCD), a help-group at Madhyamgram. Both were raised at the destitute home.

"We learnt how to handle a camera from people who came here. Now we are good photographers," said Rinku.

"This film is all about the rights of children," said Tapa. The film will compete with 60 entries in the category with ‘child rights’ as the theme.

"Forty countries have sent their films and they have selected 60 films from all over the world. We See is one of them. In this category they have selected 10 films," said CCD Director Swapan Mukherjee.

Films in the past made by the children of CCD home have been acclaimed at international venues. In 2004, Arni won best film award at a Kids for Kids Festival in Athens. Amra won critics award at Chicago International Children Film Festival in 2005 and in 2006, Inner Eye bagged the best film award in Cyprus.

Despite officially prohibiting employment of children under 14, thousands of children in the country continue to work at roadside eateries, and other hazardous industries such as carpet weaving, glass-bangle-manufacturing and firework industries. — ANI

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