Report from Times of India on Maoist documentary
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KOLKATA: A man in combat fatigues points his 9mm pistol at the sky and fires three shots, shattering the stillness of the forest - and marking a new chapter in insurgency that would kill hundreds and plunge large swathes of the country into a vicious circle of violence. It's September 21, 2004. The People's War Group has merged with Maoist Communist Centre. On one side of the forest clearing in Bastar, a hand-held video camera whirrs almost noiselessly. The mini-cassette would travel in a handbag to Kolkata, and join a stack of other such cassettes. It would rest there for nine years.
Only a handful of persons have ever viewed this footage. And now you will, says researcher and documentary maker Soumitra Dastidar - the man behind the documentary titled 'Journey Through Camera: My Days with Maoist Guerrillas'. He plans to screen an abridged version of his record of the Maoist movement, shot deep in the rebels' jungle lair, in New Delhi later this month.
Much of this video chronicle is unseen by anyone else but him and includes extensive footage of several top leaders, including Kishanji, says the filmmaker. Dastidar's youthful curiosity about the Maoists turned into a lifelong mission to try and understand why a well-educated Brahmin, a poor farmer, a brilliant college girl or a tribal would take up arms against the largest democracy on the planet.
"It was a leap into the darkness," recalls Dastidar of his first foray into Maoist territory, armed with only his raw excitement, and accompanied by a cameraman who had "absolutely no clue what he was getting into". "In fact, I chose a strapping six-footer so that he would come handy if things got rough. I was so naive," he laughs.
But why now? Why release the film that he has guarded so zealously for so long? "Now is the best time for the documentary to come in the public domain. I want my work to provoke a debate - is there space beyond structural politics? My documentation will hold up a clear picture for people to analyze. Debate is so important in democratic politics, but sadly, the space for discourse is getting constricted now," he says.
"If democracy is to be revived, such debates are necessary. I am no Maoist sympathizer. I am not even an intellectual. I simply tried to visualize social science. It's a political essay from the field," he said, calling his brand of documentary "guerrilla film-making".
Another more topical reason is whether a Maoist insurgency is at all valid in the 21st century society, he points out. "I hope my film shows a way. Is killing going to solve any problem? Was any of this killing necessary? We need to introspect," he adds.
Having spent much of his time in the rebels' lair in the company of Kishanji, he acknowledges that the Maoist military commander's death marked a turning point, "not only for the Maoist movement but for me, too". The researcher sees the lull after Kishanji's killing as an indication of a change of strategy - a hint of a "makeover" of Maoist politics. "Perhaps, even a slant towards mainstream politics. Maoists are moving into urban areas, slums and trade unions, following the path of neo-communism," he says.
Dastidar remembers discussing the issue passionately with Kishanji. "He was known as Ram-ji, then. It was in Bengal that he took the name Kishan. Back then, he was more of an ideologue. He was very well read and sharp. I still cannot reconcile myself with the Ramji I met in Bastar with the Kishanji of Bengal. What did all that bloodshed get him? How can anyone justify killing teachers in front of students in a classroom?" he asks.
His videos capture dreaded Maoists playing volleyball in jungle clearings, cooking, celebrating birthdays and anniversaries, ribbing Kishanji to sing songs in his "besur voice" - and training to kill policemen. The regimen is almost military-like and the drills and exercises clearly remind of Army bootcamp training - the emphasis on Hindi commands so that training is uniform across the Maoist corridor... The weapon-handling drills to get a recruit familiarized with his rifle... Isometric exercises... The art of living off the land... Water control... Marching discipline... Fire control.
The rebels are seen being trained to lay an ambush, how to trap the security forces in enveloping arcs of fire, and just how long to press the attack before escaping to fight another day rather than risk a close-quarter firefight with better trained forces. They are taught how to operate in squad or platoon levels for different tactical objectives. And how to most effectively use an AK47 or an Insas in a squad armed mostly with single-shot .303s or .315 rifles.
Then, there is the ideological training, where Mao Tse Tung's political theory merges with Marx. "Keeping abreast of international affairs is a must, as is reading newspapers. Every Maoist base has a library and cadres are taught English and Hindi," says Dastidar.
It all sounds like a perfect picture. "But I could sense that they were failing to turn the insurgency into a political movement. They couldn't see beyond the barrel of the gun. I first noticed it in Bihar and Chhattisgarh, where caste politics continued to be a factor in the Maoist ranks. The Maoist movement seemed to be moving away from Marxism in the last few years. The leaders couldn't break out of their Robin Hood penchant," says the filmmaker.
"I have tried to show a different India. It's a scene I might or might not see five years from now. In that sense, my 13-year-long effort is a documentation of history. And now, hopefully, it will trigger a debate in the country, from living rooms to the Parliament House," says Dastidar.
