Sister Mine

As a person, I often grapple with the notion of toxic masculinity and patriarchal societal norms - which are unfortunately, so prevalent in public consciousness. As a filmmaker, I wish to address this head on. My work thus far has spanned over 8 years and has been both fiction and non-fiction, pertaining to Political issues, Socio-economic realities and their consequences on people dealing with issues around Caste, Gender, Conformity, Jingoistic Nationalism, Sexual Violence and Patriarchy. I intend to continue to raise questions and begin conversations challenging unjust structures in hope to contribute to the ongoing struggles for a better and just world for all.

In the society that I have grown up in, siblings of opposite gender are usually conditioned to be distant. However, my own relationship with my sister is one of immense love and trust. She is a decade younger and I have been a third parent to her and we’ve both been best of friends. The idea for this film germinated from a feeling of pain within me because of separation from family, especially my sister, since my move overseas. This was coupled with the notion of honor in my society - derived from toxic masculine, patriarchal societal norms - with which I have had to deal on several occasions in my life - and have often ended up with a strong feeling of powerlessness.

Even today, when the world has progressed, many societies still uphold values that foster Honor Killings. My own society, though changing, still supports this. And as seen in recent years, many South Asian communities living abroad including in Australia, have seen cases of Honor Killings and violence in the name of honor rise.

Arundhati Roy, an author who has left quite a mark on me, has said, “India lives in several centuries at the same time.” So do the characters, therefore, of the story I’m telling through this film - some holding dearly to repressive, patriarchal practices of the Feudal era while others wanting to be modern, progressive individuals, and the protagonist, stuck in between the two.

Growing up as a male child, one had to conform to the archaic roles set by society in my home state. I have felt strongly, especially in the past few years, that my artistic works must speak up against this and must raise the need for a better alternative. This, coupled with the intent that all my work of art must advocate social change has led me to believe in and write ‘Sister Mine’.