Attend this short film showcase to experience a new nazaria of the world

They always find a way to surprise usrdquo admits Nandini Kochar cofounder of the Jogeshwaribased Nazaria Arts Collective She is referring to the new crop of young filmmakers stepping out of the collectiversquos Kahani Lab They are currently preparing for the upcoming weekend showcase titled Reimagine the result of a fourmonth long workshop that began in April this year ldquoThe idea was to reach out to teenagers from lowincome communities across the city and offer them a platform to express and tell their own storiesrdquoThe young filmmakers at a shootThe result is five short films that capture deeply personal experiences as well as larger themes of gender equality LGBTQiA rights right to education and corruption ldquoThe films were all written and conceived by the kids in their own lsquoandazrsquo For the first month we only had conversations about their lives to lay the ground for ideas and themes they would like to explorerdquo Kochar shares The talents came from the neighbourhoods of Shankarwadi in Jogeshwari Asalpha in Ghatkopar and KandivaliSixteenyearold Priya Jharsquos film Chitthi is among the curation The short film tells the story of a girl who is facing family pressure to get married after her SSC board examinations The Kandivalibased teenager says ldquoIt the film made me realise how powerful storytelling was as a medium I saw how a simple narrative can shift perspectives especially around a topic so close to my life as a girlrdquoKiran Rao interacts with the children Pic CourtesyInstagramKochar remarks how the stories were as much a form of expression as they were a need to contextualise distant experiences from the mainstream ldquoFor instance one of these stories in a film titled Could It Be is an LGBTQiA romance between two boys Sandeep Keshari who directed the short had watched these stories unfurl in mainstream cinema but did not have a source to contextualise it in their worldrdquo she points outShreya Tripathi another 16yearold filmmaker agrees Her film Lollipop tackles the sensitive subject of sexual harassment experienced by a young girl She points out ldquoThe workshop was a way to explore ourselves and learn how creative and deep thinking we are It also taught me how much the small things around us matter and how they impact usrdquoFor Iqra Shaikh a resident of Shankarwadi the programme was a chance to flip stereotypes Having noticed the lack of female Muslim superheroes on screen the 16year old decided to turn hero by creating a hacker who takes on a corrupt politician But it was the process of collaborating and creating stories that excited her She remarks ldquoI now have the power to share my stories in so many different ways My favourite things now are filmmaking and zine makingrdquoNandini Kochar Priya Jha Shreya Tripathi and Iqra ShaikhKochar hopes to carry this forward next year too She has reason to This project has now translated into potential career opportunities for some of these young filmmakers They have also had a chance to interact with established filmmakers including director Kiran Rao who had dropped by for a session Shaikh for instance is interning as a video consultant for the NGO Gully Clinic while Tripathi has already interned with Chalk amp Cheese the company that produced Payal Kapadiarsquos recent Cannes awardwinner and Academyaward entrant All We Imagine As LightIn view of this Kochar notes that their first showcase on Sunday is open to the public and will also be attended by organisations and students from schools across the city Moreover it will be hosted curated and presented by the teenage filmmakers themselves ldquoThe films that these kids are working on and making deserve a larger platform since they are themes that will resonate with a lot of kids and adults alikerdquo Kochar concludesOn October 20 11 am to 1 pmAt Museum of Solutions Victoria House Lower ParelLog on to insiderinEntry Rs 300