Private Project

Scorched

In a predominantly agrarian society, providers of food to millions struggle to eat. Their living conditions are pathetic, often forcing them to kill themselves. ‘Taapar’ (‘Scorched’) explores their aspirations amidst the ongoing crisis. Through the story of Raj Singh, the marginal peasant, who gave his all to raise a crop, but eventually, didn’t harvest it as it was much better to abandon the crop than to spend more time and money on harvest, storage and sale; and the farmer that consumed poison, but, eventually didn’t die. The film depicts the problem that engulfs farmers and their families and the question of a solution.

  • Akshay Gouri
    Director
    Repugnance, Adhinayak Jaya He!, Pratikaar
  • Akshay Gouri
    Writer
  • SRFTI, Kolkata
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Taapar
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Student
  • Runtime:
    23 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    October 1, 2018
  • Country of Origin:
    India
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Language:
    Hindi
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata
  • 24th Kolkata International Film Festival
    Kolkata
    India
    November 16, 2018
    Indian Premiere
    Official Selection
  • 6th Kolkata People's Film Festival
    Kolkata
    India
    January 20, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Frames of Freedom: Fascism Has Economics
    Sonepat
    India
    February 16, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Association for Asian Studies Film Expo 2019
    Denver
    United States
    March 23, 2019
    Official Selection
  • 12th International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala
    Thiruvananthapuram
    India
    June 22, 2019
    Official Selection in Competition Section
  • 4th International Students FIlm Festival of Pernambuco
    Recife
    Brazil
    July 9, 2019
    Brazilian Premiere
    Official Selection
  • The Lift-Off Sessions
    London
    United Kingdom
    Official Selection
  • 9th Dalhousie Film Meet
    Dalhousie
    India
    October 11, 2019
    Official Selection
Director Biography - Akshay Gouri

Born in 1992 in the North-west Indian state, Haryana, Akshay Gouri is a Screenwriter and Director who has made short films, both fiction and non-fiction, pertaining to Political issues, Socio-economic realities and their consequences on people. He is an alumnus of Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute, Kolkata.

His Long-take short film, ‘Adhinayak, Jaya He!’ (2017) asks tough questions about the authoritarian nature of the current Indian polity and Islamophobia.

‘Gilaani’ (2017) points out the chauvinistic-nationalism driven country that India has become today and examines the various aspects of violence perpetrated by the impune armed forces and its psychological impact on people at both ends of the spectrum.

‘Taapar’ (2018) is a documentary on the humongous Agrarian crisis that India has been going through for well over a decade now. Focusing on Marginal Peasants, the film points out to the extremely difficult conditions that the providers of food to us all have to face. From distress sales of agricultural produce to poor infrastructural support to hollow promises of better days by the government, the film is the farmers’ lives as they see it. The film has traveled across countries and has participated in several International Film Festivals in India, Brazil and the USA.

His upcoming fiction short-film ‘Farzandi’, explores the psychology of a young, urban, working woman as she tries to cope with the longing of having a mother and her fight with patriarchy that boggles her down at every step.

Filmography:
Janeu (2015)
Nishchesht (2016)
Karwat (2016)
Pratikaar (2016)
Adhinayak, Jaya He! (2017)
Gilaani (2017)
Taapar (2018)
Farzandi (2019)

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Director Statement

The intent behind making the film was to bring out to the open, the voices of the people whose lives depend on agriculture, on which in turn, depends the nation. My attempt was for the people to be able to point out the problems that they face; the problems that need to be addressed and systematic, structural changes be made in order for the country's biggest part of the population to survive. The film depicts women working and men talking, which is a representation of the condition of women agriculturists, whose very presence in the field is never acknowledged by men. The film also touches upon the farce of a dominant social identity in rural northern India - land owners. People who own land, however minuscule the expanse of it may be, don't consider working on daily wages on other people's farms an option because of the social identities that they have. They believe that working as daily-wage laborers is beneath them; starving is better.