Writing with Fire

A powerful documentary film capturing the story of the women journalists at Khabar Lahariya, India's only all-female-run news organization and what it means to be a woman and a journalist in the marginalized communities today.

The movie has perfectly captured the India's millennia-old caste system, traditions, sexual violence against women and corruption. A powerhouse of a movie, clearly showcasing that there is no limit to what a woman can accomplish - what empowerment really means!

Writing with Fire paints a powerful picture of some of society's most neglected finding a voice and lifting themselves up with a little help from technology and a lot of sheer guts and effort. The documentary provides "fly on the wall" coverage of the women of Khabar Lahariya (KL) as they go about investigating and reporting on a number of stories. This is well interwoven with first-person narrative and reflection by the primary protagonists as well as snippets from their day-to-day lives. The only direct narrative from the film-makers are a few captions - mostly places, events, dates. The result is an under-stated and authentic account that, for the most part, shies away from theatrics or embellishment. Events like a severed head are covered with empathy and sensitivity, but without the need for gory, voyeuristic detail. The challenges and dangers these women face in their work and even at home are palpable, but never graphic.

The other fascinating aspect of this story is how a group of rural women learn and embrace technology - smart phones, social media, digital editing and distribution channels - in order to empower themselves and expand their impact. Digital Transformation gurus - take note!

The latter part of the documentary does focus on the rise to power of BJP - India's ruling political part. The women of KL candidly discuss concerns as they go about covering events and people associated with BJP. This part of the narrative may unfortunately raise political and religious ire and cause some backlash. It is worth remembering that the fight these women are fighting goes back centuries. Current politics is just the latest curve in a very long road. It is not the centerpiece of this narrative.

While I would definitely recommend this documentary, I do have a couple of minor criticisms. I found the narrative a little choppy and a little slow in some places. Also, the subtitles are sometimes not accurate. "I like it" becomes "I am so happy" (10th minute). Elsewhere, a wistful lament becomes a harsh criticism (28th minute). But these are minor defects that take little away from the whole.

We did a Sundance watch-party with friends and Writing With Fire was the stand-out title from this year's festival for ALL of us! Coming from India, what stood out for me was how multiple themes were nuanced, framed and contextualised. Unlike many films from the subcontinent, this didn't really feel like a 'documentary' - just amazing scenes playing out one after the other and we were all vying for each character. No typical, infuriating India story/ India's Daughter BS! Sunita was my fave! Gorgeously shot. Just loved everything about this.

I hope this can come to the US for an in-person theatrical! That'd be awesome! You already have 17 big fans from NYU here rooting for you!!!

Nice documentary but enough of the over the top gushing.

Khabar Lehariya is a newspaper and news channel run entirely by women. The film focuses on the story of 3 strong, intelligent and fierce reporters that work for KL and their journeys. Based in rural Uttar Pradesh, India, the film presents everything these women go through in a predominantly male profession, and the challenges of being a working woman in rural India. Throughout the film you'll find yourself cheering for every single one of the women - not because the film makes you, but you just want to. While the women are most definitely inspiring, my favourite part of the movie was the story telling and the direction. The film makers don't tell you how and what to feel. They present the story exactly how it is - no leading and no directed messages. The audience gets to decide how they feel about the story. "Writing with Fire" is an absolute Masterpiece and deserves every award, accolade and then some! Kudos to the film makers and the women of Khabar Lehariya!