Sindhustan

I was invited to a screening followed by a Q and A with the Writer / Director Sapna Moti Bhavnani. I was so touched by this film of her ancestors and the lost stories of all those in Sindh that didn't have a voice. Sapna was on a mission to tell these stories through relatives and also those who suffered from long ago and had to leave Sindh. Loved the cinematography but my favorite was seeing the story of the migration narrated and shown by her tattoos that cover her entire legs. Mind you beautiful tattoo art. Really creative and beautifully done. I highly recommend this film if you want to educate yourself about the migration of Sindhi's.

Thoroughly enjoyed it. It's very rich visually and has beautiful tracks for accompaniment.

Speaking of the audio tracks, the one I really liked was where Abida Parveen is shown and the lyrics goes something like "kandhas arja allah khe".

Also, I really liked the way movie has used "Mukhe chhade wende".

I could understand some of the tattoos but not all. May be there is another video doing a deep dive on them?

Thanks for making it so well!

"Sindhustan" is a movie on Sindhis and Sindh. I watched it several times and each time I got more ideas about what happened in partition with Sindh and Sindhis. Sapna Moti Bhavnani is based in Mumbai. She is a producer and director of Sindhustan. Sapna has never been in Sindh. Sapna is Sindhi. In her age of 36 she realized that her roots are in Sindh. Identity is a thrust and Sapna not only through mind and soul but also physically wants to travel to Sindh. However, her visa was denied. Tattoos on her body are permanent and will always remind her about her roots in Sindh. She herself has become Sindh. Sindhustan is a very unique name coined by our beloved Dada J P Vaswani. Sindhustan is an hour-long documentary movie worth watching to learn the soul of Sindh, which is love. The documentary has the message that from Mohen Jo Daro to Jhulelal , from Bhittai to Dada Vaswani and from dancing girl to Sapna there is love, love and only love. In Sindhustan there is neither a hero or heroine and nor a villain. This is a unique documentary movie in which Sapna has put efforts to reach out and educate young people through art that what is Sindhustan? What happened in partition? She speaks through her body and it is an art that is most powerful tool in the movie. This is first time in history that motherland is described through body art (tattoos). Sindhustan has already won four international awards and is also nominated for other two awards. This is more than a movie. It is a movement and whoever wants to join Sapna's movement must watch this movie. I highly recommend to young people to watch Sindhustan.

In the documentary Sindhustan, Sapna Bhavnani is tracing her roots while keeping a permanent record on her legs using needle and ink. This documentary moves us, Sindhis. Non-Sindhis can see through this a love story among people and their homeland called Sindh. This documentary has moved me personally, some moments in it gave me goosebumps. Sapna has beautifully captured that feeling and nostalgia that Sindhis feel when they meet another Sindhi somewhere in the world. Each and every one of us is so proud of our history, culture and mere essence of Sindh. Sindh is our nucleus, our orbit, where ever we go, wherever we are, we still revolve around Sindh. Sapna has given me so much hope through this documentary and she has tried to break the thick walls that Sindhis have built around themselves, particularly the ones who were forced to leave Sindh at the time of partition. It is not the materialistic needs but a sense of belonging gives us purpose in life. Like Sapna, I strive to preserve and revive the lost parts of our culture and heritage. I want to thank Sapna for putting it out there for the next generation of Sindhis to see where they belong.

So interesting to know about the Sindhi community, their stories , their struggles , their challenges post partition. Sapna Bhavnani takes us through a journey about our culture , our food, our history and so much more. A must watch!