Breaking new ground

Film:   The lost Childhood
Genre: Documentary
Direction: Bilal A. Jan
Duration: 30 min
Tanveen Kawoosa
The cruise boat cleaved the water languorously in the dark of night. As we witness this time honoured spectacle of the dazzling lake aura, the vast dark sky fill the entire frame. Accompanying this compelling and memorable image of boatman rowing the boat down the lake is the sound of ‘blast’ a distracting leitmotif. The image forms the backdrop for the opening credit sequence of the film ‘ The Lost Childhood’.
No more imagery to unfold the theme of the film, but only text and typewriter that speaks of ‘Child labour Act’, the  phenomenon of under-age labour which continues to flourish despite laws banning it in every country.
The opening scene with the judicious combination of fantasy and nightmare may lull audience in the sense of torpor. It  turns a wee bit disappointing as filmmaker relied on the same old cliché of grenade ‘blast’ to equate the vale’s unrest. Instead, the deep roar of pain inside the hearts of children could have found better idiom in the boom of tide. Nevertheless, the film ‘’Lost Childhood’ by young Kashmiri filmmaker Bilal A .Jan’ has the potential to stir the masses.
The ‘Lost childhood’ was screened in the 10^th Mumbai International film festival, an honour that film richly deserves. The film also bagged Nina Sugati SR Award for conceptual art in cinema.
What make the film so fascinating is it’s portray of families pathos aesthetically in a bit innovative way to give them life and whimsy. The story itself is a simple, charming piece about innocent children who lead a fight against odds in life. Highlighting the plight of Kashmiri children working in hazardous industries like carpet, shawl and automobile, the film intends to sensitise society and the parents who send their young children to work in order to "augment" their income.
The film revolves around remote villages of Qazigund, and Beerwah wherein child labour problem is quite grave.The boys work 20 hours a day, seven days a week in dingy small sized rooms. Despite rigorous seven -day work load, these innocent children are paid menial wages. Nearly 80% of them suffer from myopia and retinal disease due to the constant eyestrain.
Sound effect
The title segment has strong dramatic sad tunes which run through the film as a dominant principle of sound leitmotif. The sound is a restatement of the mournful music that’s recurred throughout this film’s considerable length, in the collective life of the children.
Yet the film ends on lively musical notes.  In some sequences the sound track of the film is in opposition to this dramatic music, entirely silent.
The other sounds effects include_ typewriter, scrapping of feet of the lawyer who reads out child labour Act in court room, grenade blast, and thud.
Stark facts
While the film has focused on the failure of ‘child labour Act’ to stop under- age employment of children, it has also delved deep in to the unresolved poverty crisis which forces these children to work in unsafe environment. The reasons for this are chillingly articulated by the owner of a carpet factory that employs children at its looms: "They do not have any other alternative,’’
The true potential of underprivileged children is not channelized in the right direction. Poverty is the bane of their life and education, which can be instrumental in their upliftment, is denied to them. Most of them lost sole breadwinner of the family in turmoil. The film discourse is replete with reference to repercussions of turmoil subtly. It explores the stark fact that the future does not hold much promise for these unfortunate children.
Visual metaphors
Art is often viewed as caricature of society an exaggerated portrayal of the life and times it evolves in. Human emotions take the centre stage in most film endeavour from war, epics social drama and magical realism. The filmmaker also relied much on the melodramatic elements which explores as the curious camera showcases   close faces of individuals with distinct traces of meek expression.
When we talk of expressive use of visual language, we mean that the thematic idea expressed in any picture should primarily be created by the visual composition of the picture. This principle is illustrated at the very basic level loosely only in few sequences for example   kitchen scene, the blowing out of lamp --- replaced with the dawn.
The attempt is to illustrate how the elements in the shot, via actors, properties are so arranged that the resulting visual picture is expressive of the thematic idea. However, certain important visual motifs have eluded the filmmakers grasp.
In the last scene we see the title ‘lost childhood’ inscribed on the tree trunk, accompanying the sound effect of thud. Tree has different connotative meaning and this visual symbol does not synchronise with over all thematic structure of the film. The sequence does not establish the law of an Organic unity.
A film is perceptive portray of children for whom ‘’life is nothing but work ‘. Through the depiction of the everyday life of several poor families, “the lost childhood” typifies life of children. The film strikes upon an unfailingly universal theme as well; child’s struggle to live against the most inimical forces of destiny.
The film besides evoking rigours and horrors of daily life for children has interesting visual leitmotifs in certain sequences. The director spelt out film aesthetics in terms of compositional formats, depth of field while highlighting the stress of the day to day running of the household. We need to note that the effect in the script design has been achieved by carefully planned thematic threads. The music continues as the children huddle out their sadness.
Even if we question the appropriateness of visual metaphors in certain sequences, we cannot overlook the fact that ‘The lost childhood’ dares to look beyond the old formula of making Kashmiri documentary. And the audience too have an   urge for experimental films.
Untrammelled by the constraints that make feature  films formulaic, documentary films bring everything in life in to focus-the personal, social, political. If nothing else, ‘The Lost childhood’ makes us think-----
How long Children will continue to lose out on their Childhood.