Forgotten Floods

In late 2007, over 50 million people were affected by South Asia’s worst floods in living memory. An area the size of Britain was flooded and thousands died. Inexplicably, this vast natural tragedy was little covered in the British and world media.

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In partnership with Channel 4 and Action Aid, Native Voice travelled to South Asia to make 4 short films. These films relate first hand, poignant personal experiences by 4 floods survivors. A midwife, a child, a mother and a man from the lowest caste re-live their interior feelings, emotions and experiences as the waters engulfed them, their villages and their land. These are the floods in the words of those who survived.

To watch the four short films (one after the other) described below click

philA MOTHER A mother reveals her feelings after looking after her baby in the midst of the floods. “Around 2 am we escaped our house, somehow we swam through the floods and reached the road we lived there under plastic sheets for up to one and half months being in the road is scary for a woman and the rain continues what else can I tell you ? we have lost our livelihood where will I go with my little child…?”
child water A CHILD. Thoughts from a child to his younger brother about his feelings and experiences as the waters swept over them.
“My dear little brother, I will never forget the night when you were drowning. It rained for 10-15 days, it never stopped. Our house was flooded with water and reached my neck.I saw you going under water. I screamed your name. We pressed your stomach to save you and brought you to hospital. We slept outside, starving. Nobody cared for us in hospital…”
baby n mum A MIDWIFE. A letter from a midwife to a child born during the floods.
“Dear Child, you were born during the floods, we were unable to send a message to anyone, there wasn’t any way of communication.When your mother felt the pangs, your father came at 1am in the night. I covered the distance of 3 kilometers on the raft to serve you and your mother at midnight. I had to bring you into this world…”
girl alone A Dahlit. Thoughts from a man from the lowest caste in India about the desperation of his forgotten community during the floods.
“We are the most deprived people from the lowest caste. Our district is located below river levels. If it rains for a few days our area becomes flooded. It was on Indipendence Day. As we raised the flag in the village, the waters came. We built a raft made with tree trunks and went in search of food…”
To watch the four short films described above click

Director / Camera: Lisa Cazzato Vierya
Producer: Giovanna Stopponi
Fixer India: Rajesh
Editor: Esteban Uyarra
Executive Producer: Phil Cox

Skills

Posted on

November 20, 2007