The Indian documentary, Writing With Fire (2021), has picked up two major awards at the Sundance Film Festival 2021, which concluded on Tuesday. The feature, co-directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh, won the Audience Award and the Special Jury Award: Impact for Change honours in the World Cinema Documentary section.
🏆 Audience Award: World Cinema Documentary goes to WRITING WITH FIRE directed by Rintu Thomas & Sushmit Ghosh. #Sundance pic.twitter.com/pypYE7V7cr
— SundanceFilmFestival (@sundancefest) February 3, 2021
🏆 World Documentary Special Jury Award in Impact for Change goes to WRITING WITH FIRE directed by Rintu Thomas. #Sundance pic.twitter.com/YVFjw8o5c3
— SundanceFilmFestival (@sundancefest) February 3, 2021
This year’s edition was held virtually from 28 January due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic in the United States. Writing With Fire follows young rural Dalit reporters of Khabar Lahariya, India’s only all-female news network.
Rintu and Ghosh tell the story of the women, spearheaded by Meera, the chief reporter, as they transition from print to digital to move with the times. Using their smartphones, they cover stories dealing with caste and gender violence, police incompetence, and cases of injustice and intimidation.
The film festival’s website describes the documentary as “an electrifying reminder to never underestimate the strength of a woman who’s had enough.”