Life along borders

Villagers catch a glimpse of Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, where Sikh prophet Guru Nanak breathed his last

Film-maker and IIT-Kharagpur graduate Samarth Mahajan was born in Dinanagar, a village in Gurdaspur, approximately 16 km from the thread that divides India and Pakistan. His maternal family had migrated from Lahore after Independence, and his bedtime stories often included tales of the Partition.

"Despite living in a fairly remote region, I had a regular childhood," says the 27-year-old. But, the revelation of birthplace would almost always elicit intriguing reactions from peers. "People who have grown up in the mainland derive [their] perspective of life on the borders based on what the media projects. Hence, it becomes difficult to imagine a life beyond the general image of terrorism, war and army-men in these areas. It never occurred to me that I was living in an area that the mainland looks at with a completely different mindset," he says.

One of his favourite haunts as a kid was the Wagah border, which he would visit often with his family. Back then, civilians were allowed to walk right up to the gate and have a chat with people from the other side. "It was something we would eagerly look forward to." While the border security personnel have put an end to the practice, Mahajan's fascination with borders continues.

Samarth Mahajan

His latest documentary, Borderlands, in collaboration with the collective Camera and Shorts, which won a National award for The Unreserved, is a collection of stories from all of India's borders. The film aims to capture the humanity of the people, beyond the general understanding of military and political relationships. For this, the team has spent close to two years researching unique stories.

They have even created a two-year roadmap for the project, which includes a three-part journey for shooting the film in villages near Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Gujarat. Through a crowdfunding campaign, they have managed to raise R25,00,000 to wrap up the film. Their breathtaking research has taken them to unusual places. For instance, they found out about a village near Bamiyal, in Punjab, which used to get locked down at sundown because the security personnel would bolt the gates. "You could only access that piece of land, which was wedged between the borders, from 9 am to 4 pm. So, an entire village would find themselves in no man's land every single day."

Since access to filming in remote villages is a challenge, Mahajan began by networking with locals. His own background as a borderland native made it easy for him to connect with people on social media. "I'd tag along with them and that is the reason many opened up. But, I must add, the villages are wary of the media, so I had to keep clarifying that I'm only a film-maker," he says.

The docu will also turn the lens on what happens to fishermen, who, while looking for a better catch, often drift into Pakistan's waters, and consequently get jailed across the border. The film will explore what life is like for such men when they return home after years. The team also plans to document Sikh pilgrims who use binoculars to catch a glimpse of Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, where Guru Nanak breathed his last, in Pakistan.

What Mahajan found fascinating in all of this was the fluidity when it came to their identities. Take the Sodha Rajputs, for instance, who make a trip from Pakistan to Rajasthan each year, driven by the desire to find a suitable match for their kin. "They straddle both identities with seeming ease. Although many Hindus are oppressed in Pakistan, the Sodhas, the only Rajput clan in Tharparkar district of Sindh, seem to be doing just fine."

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