Had Anhad - Journeys with Ram and Kabir

Citizens for Peace organized a screening of the film 'Had Anhad - Journeys with Ram and Kabir' in the month of September. Shabnam Virmani has directed the film. Started in 2003, the Kabir project brings together the experiences of a series of journeys in quest of this 15th century mystic poet in our contemporary worlds. 'Had Anhad' is the first film in a series of four. A small screening of select individuals who would be in a position to disseminate this film widely to the mainstream. The audience included Mr. Om Puri (Chairman, National Film Development Corporation) and Ms. Nina Lath Gupta ( MD, National Film Development Corporation) and others.
This film is an attempt to understand Kabir's Ram through poetry, song and encounters in India and Pakistan. It provides an insight into the politics of Kabir's poetry and the genre of folk music. Its journeys through different parts of India and Pakistan locate Dalit, Muslim and Hindu folk singers, capturing their intensity primarily through their enthralling music. Deeply rich in subtle detail and simplicity, the film takes us unrelentingly inward even as we venture outward. This film provides an opportunity to listen and to make the connect between Kabir's words and our day-to-day acts, the social, spiritual and political choices in which we're all enmeshed.

It was a wonderful experience for me. I not only got the chance to watch a fantastic film but also got to meet a number of very interesting people from various fields. The film also touched me at a personal level as it brought back a number of memories of my three years in boarding school. I was lucky enough to study in The Valley School in Bangalore. It was there, at my very first assembly that I was introduced to the songs, poetry and writings of Kabir. In school, it was used to teach us the basic values of life. All the elements of the film were extremely appealing and absolutely captured your attention; whether it was the treatment, the music, the people interviewed and of course the locations. The simplicity of the content of Kabir's literature and the simplicity of the people who till this day live by his way of thinking has changed and influenced the way I think about certain things in my life.