The People of Waste

(Documentary/Hindi with English subtitles/2020/20 min.)
Directed by Rémi de Bercegol [CSH], Grant Davis & Shankare Gowda.

Followed by a discussion moderated by Paulina Lopez (associated member of the CSH) with the filmmakers, Jai Prakash ‘’Santu’’ Choudhary (Safai Sena), Swati Singh Sambyal and Ravi Agarwal (Toxics Link).

About the movie: What happens to our garbage after it is dumped? Through the example of Delhi, the film explores the transformation of a piece of plastic waste into a resource, through filmed interviews with diverse “people of waste” living in the shadow of consumer society. It aims at making visible the myriad of professions that specialize in the collection, sorting, reselling, cleaning, shredding and transformation of waste, from the stigmatized garbage picker at the bottom of the chain until the industrialist at the top of the pyramid who re-injects the recovered materials into the formal economy. Beyond the Indian case, it reminds the spectators of their responsibility as a producer of waste and their relation with this waste recovery system, putting into question the ambivalent discourses on recycling which tend to legitimize an endless mass consumption.

“Swachh Bharat ke Nayak” series: the screening is part of a broader 2020 event in India supported by the French Institute that intends to engage toward a reflexive approach on the heroes of clean India.

More info on: https://www.facebook.com/thecityofwaste