The Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films, MIFF 2014, closed on a high note with the announcement of the annual awards on Sunday.
Bangladeshi director Kamar Ahmad Simon’s 90-minute documentary ‘Are You Listening!’ won the Golden Conch award for best documentary film over 60 minutes. It received the Golden Conch trophy and a cash prize of Rs 5,00,000 of which Rs 3,00,000 was for the director and Rs 2,00,000 for producer Sara Afreen.
Set in coastal Bangladesh, ‘Are You Listening!’ reveals the alarming effects of climate change and captures the fighting spirit of a community and its will to survive. The seaside village of Sutarkhali was submerged by a cyclone. Protagonist Rakhi, her husband Soumen and their six-year-old son were forced to live on a dyke with 100 other families. The government was slow to help the families reclaim their land and the delay gave rise to friction.
Thirty-eight-year-old Simon who lives in Dhaka had studied architecture and worked in advertising before turning film maker.
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