In this documentary 'Jashn-e-Azadi'-- 'How We Celebrate Freedom'
is as explicit to speak of violence in Kashmir as the violence itself.
Jashn-e-Azadi, is not only a rear glance of life with military, it is a smidgen
more, in and out, interlacing the cowed survivals and the recurring pangs of
death.
The movie start with a desolate father looks for his son's grave in a Shaheedi
Qabristan (martyr's graveyard), a teenager girl describes the body of a young
man in the neighbourhood, killed during an army operation--"The body is
lying in the crossroad amidst the houses, no one is allowed to approach, even
the dog did not go near it." Her stoic, flat voice, communicates a long
endurance.Post trauma centres, flood with disjointed minds, doctors listen
to the staccato stories of a woman, and more. In her dreams, shrouded figures
appear - and never reveal their faces.
At Independence Day. Orphaned, children sing Iqbal's ' sare
jahan se achchha, hindostan hamara,' and mark the glorification of their lives
being spared, while their loved ones got killed. A feeling as alien like
freedom would not tick these young hearts to sing, slaved within the terror of
the past and an uncertain future.
The way the film captures self defending attempts by the armed
forces to manage for itself, an image of credibility is poignant in sense of
negation. The images of the army run schools and orphanages, the donation of
portable radio sets by them to the victims, the insistence to sing the national
anthem, and an added pinch of "operation successful", as claimed by
the forces, give bouts of disillusionment to the boasted claims of peace. Lives
put to discord and then mend up with patches of compensations are received as a
mockery.
The movie doesn't escape to obtain martyrdom as it is hugged by
Kashmiri youth. Martyrdom in Kashmir is more often a given status than
achieved. One encounter and ten martyrs are recognised, another encounter, a
score more.
Theatrical performances demonstrate a five century old
colonisation of the valley, and its fate being decided and re-decided by the
any one but the people of the land.However, with all the ugliness, the beauty of symbolism is maintained.
The symbol of tourists wearing colourful Kashmiri attires to be clicked in as a
remembrance of Kashmir, when the movie opens and the same attires being
replaced by a military scarf that a girl chooses to be clicked in as the film
closes, leaves a strong impression of the slow generated change. The change of
recognition of Kashmir, from beauty to the spectors of death.
