‘Normal people have no time for violence’

Kamlesh K Mishra - the writer-director of the 66th National Film Award-winning film Madhubani: The Station of Colors — has directed the documentary titled Delhi Riots: A Tale Of Burn &Blame. Released last month on Voot, the movie seeks to capture the real picture of dreaded riots in the Capital, a firsthand account of eyewitnesses and the ‘agenda and propaganda’ that triggered violence and killed 53 people.

Mishra moved to Delhi from Bihar in 1991 to get coaching for IAS entrance exams. After two unsuccessful attempts, he entered journalism in 1994. In 2000, he began making TV shows (Ye Hui Na Baat, Safarnama, among others), and documentary films. 

In 2010, he set up his production company, Saraansh Films India Pvt Ltd. His first feature film, Azamgarh, is yet to be released (got delayed due to lockdown), but a short film Kitaab (2017) was selected for over 50 international film festivals and bagged more than 24 awards. Excerpts from an interview:

What prompted you to make ‘Delhi Riots...’?
The reportage on Delhi riots. Media was busy with who gave the provocative speech, who committed the first act of violence, who caused the mayhem, and forgot about the people who were affected in these riots. I felt compelled to show the grief of people who lost their loved ones. This rioting was a new kind of experiment, done with planning. It was important to find its root cause. I felt ignoring the ground reality won’t be good, neither for us nor for our future generations. I have tried my best to bring out the real picture. But the conspiracies are so deep that many are still hidden, they too need to be brought to light.

Is the documentary inspired by lawyer Monika Arora’s book by the same name?
No. I had been working independently. I had completed shooting by March 24, much before the book came out. I feel, while writing a book, one can always change the narrative. Like a website did - there is a Muslim boy narrating an incident in the film but this website attributed it to a Hindu boy, turning the whole incident on its head. In print, writers often do that depending upon their own views and affiliations, but in a documentary, one cannot do it which makes it reliable - my film has all the documentary evidence, the names of people, their addresses, and anyone can check it. There is no viewpoint of mine in the film.

Were you scared while shooting?
Delhi is home, so there was no fear. But, the atmosphere was heavy and gloomy in the riot-hit area. So much had happened so quickly, and the raw pain was evident. Believe me, normal people, Hindus or Muslims, never think of hurting others — they are all busy with their lives and have no time for violence. In fact, we were more scared due to corona. We started shooting when the pandemic happened, and completed just a day before the first lockdown began.

What are you busy with currently?
I am making a documentary film on the lockdown. I have a few small clips of the videos made during the actual lockdown, but now we are re-creating the lockdown scenes and shooting in different parts of Delhi.
Also, a couple of feature films are underway. There is one on a love story during lockdown and another is titled Masoom Sawaal, which talks about behavioural changes a girl goes through during menarche, the restrictions that the family puts on her and the societal taboos around menstrual cycle. The shooting is complete, and the film is likely to be out in May.