The New York Times follows up (tip from Angana) on those Kids with their Cameras [see previous posts 1,2,3]:
The children’s story is by now well known, thanks to the sad, beautiful film that Ms. Briski and Ross Kauffman made about the youngsters’ pinched lives in Sonagachi, the largest red-light district in Calcutta. Their world opened up when Ms. Briski, a photojournalist struck by the children’s plight, decided to give them cameras and teach them photography.
Avijit actually makes his observation in “Born Into Brothels: Reconnecting,” a short three-years-after addendum to the original film that shows the ecstatic reunion of Ms. Briski and most of the children. They were between 8 and 12 when “Born Into Brothels” was shot; they are entering adolescence now, taller, more mature and, thanks to her efforts, attending boarding schools. They appear to have been rescued.
Ms. Briski’s life has changed, too. In 2002, she founded Kids With Cameras, an international nonprofit organization that is building a school for the children of Sonagachi, partly with money from the sales of her students’ photographs. (Kids With Cameras has also established programs in Haiti, Jerusalem and Cairo.)
There were several comments following one of our previous entries that didn’t quite like the message this movie sent or the idea that Briski was “rescuing” these kids. Most comments however were positive. Anyone who has seen the movie can attest to the fact that their story is powerful. If you live in New York then you can decide for yourself this weekend at an exhibit of their work. I’m curious as to what became of the children:
Open to the public, Kids with Cameras: Calcutta will be presented at ICP, 1114 Avenue of the Americas at 43rd St., Aug. 10 through 14 from 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm. The CINEMAX Reel Life presentation Born Into Brothels debuts TUESDAY, AUG. 16 (7:00-8:30 pm ET/PT), exclusively on CINEMAX. In tandem with the premiere, Born into Brothels: Reconnecting, a short update on the children featured in the documentary, will be available on CINEMAX On Demand beginning Aug. 11; Born Into Brothels will also be available on CINEMAX On Demand beginning that day, in advance of its CINEMAX debut.
the colloquial bengali in the movie was so much easier to understand that the high-falutin’ stuff i’ve tried to absorb in one or two movies.
the colloquial bengali in the movie was so much easier to understand
Hi Razib the atheist, My boy Asis is Bengali and he sent me a link to this film when it premiered.
Neither he nor I have seen it (I hope I am using proper English, as I am an American), but I am looking forward to it.
Asis sent me a CD/Book set “Teach Yourself Bengali”, which, according to the book, is common Bengali. It is a straightforward lesson plan. I must say however, I learn much more listening to him converse in a language with his friends or family (without the benefit of a study guide) than any book or program.
For whatever that is worth… a gori, Brandy (as if the name ‘Brandy’ needed clarification) 😉
Update on the kids:
I got this message from Kids with Cameras in July –
(you can supprot their work through http://www.kids-with-cameras.org/home/)
Dear Friends of Kids with Cameras, We are so grateful for your continued and generous support of our work! There are many exciting developments at Kids with Cameras we want to share with you.
THE KIDS
The kids are doing well and send their greetings. Kochi, Tapasi and Mamoni are all attending boarding schools. Manik and Shanti were recently accepted to Future Hope, where Avijit has been living and studying for the past three years. When asked if they had a message for the donors and friends of Kids with Cameras, Avijit said, “We all want to thank all of them, first, who have given us so much care and support. We especially would like to thank those people who all have worked so much for making the film a great success. We hope to meet all our fans, if we get a chance.”
Avijit’s High School Scholarship Avijit’s fans will be delighted to learn that he has been accepted to one of the most prestigious boarding schools in the United States and will begin school this fall. He has been awarded a partial scholarship, but will need additional support to complete his high school education in the U.S. You can donate directly to Avijit’s scholarship fund by entering “Avijit Scholarship” in the comment box provided in our online donation pages.
School of Leadership and the Arts Kids with Cameras is very fortunate to be partnering with Cameron Sinclair, the much-lauded founder and Executive Director of Architecture for Humanity, to develop a home and school for the children of Calcutta’s red light district. Cameron’s architecture students at the University of Montana designed possible schemes for the facility that emphasize sustainability and foster a creative, serene and secure environment for the children.
Why does this feel a bit off? Is the kid equipped emotionally and educationally to handle this? How often would he be able to visit India? I mean if they still havenÂ’t raised enough money for a full scholarship, how much money are they budgeting for his trips to India?
The website still has his picture and his story. Will they at some point remove it? Will he be the kid whose mom is the “prostitute”?
I think it all sounds very cumbaya, but I donÂ’t think the organizers, he or his parents know the distance that this kid will have to cross. I know it sounds patronizing but I doubt he or his parents understand the full implications.
Just my opinion. I am not sure why this bothers me.
Scholarship aside, these kids should be left alone. You go to the website and you can get the limited edition signed books, you can email the kids, see pictures of them and etc. At some point these kids need to go on with their lives. They shouldn’t be the “kids with camera” kids all their life.
I was thinking perhaps the extra donations would help pay for extra spending money for him..if he’s at an expensive boarding school it would help him settle in more if he was dressed here, had money to spend AND money to travel back and forth…
I am assuming “Partial Scholarship” means that they still haven’t raised enough money for the education portion. But I think the money will eventually be raised.
And I noticed that the last time there was a post about this, it was mentioned that the film would not be shown in India to protect the kids privacy. What happened to that concern now? Since the movie is being shown here. And Avijit will be going to school here.
It sounds like you have not seen this film. In this film, Avijit talked about how his mother wanted him to go to study in London. During the filming, his mother was killed by her pimp. His father is a hash addict. If you saw the film, you would know that he was flown to Amsterdam for a prestigious photo exhibition, so they are well aware of how far America is. These kids do not want to be left alone. They asked for help many times in this film. In addition, his grandmother spoke earnestly about her desire for Avijit to get an education.
To Tef… You truly need to take yourself out of the world around you and consider the world in which Avajit and these children live.
They are surrounded by pain and suffering. Of course it will be difficult for Avajit to adjust to life far away, but there is no comparison between the difficulty of living outside of India and the difficulty that was in store for the children in those brothels.
You need to stop looking at it from the perspective of someone who has lived in a life of privilege, as we in the west do. Your comments just illustrate how unable you are to understand the suffering.
The people who want to help these children are not passing judgement, rather recognizing a reality.
You must understand that if there is a choice between staying in brothels, and moving thousands of miles away and dealing with separation, the choice must be to leave… Nothing could be worse for the soul than witnessing what these children lived with everyday.
Please… think about the alternatives… Think about what their lives would be like… If you told Avajit that he could not return to India for 10 years, and that when he came to America he would be isolated and treated differently from other kids, and that he would be judged, but in the end he will have all the opportunities that the world can offer him, and safety, and health, and the power to help others as well as the people that he loves… What do you think he would choose? What would you choose?
I just finished watching the film and was excited to learn of the opportunity that has been afforded to Avijit to garner the education he was so seeking to receive. Having had the experience of attending one of these “prestigious” boarding schools ,that he will be attending, and having to travel far from my family in order to do it, I can vouch for the caring and nurturing environment that he will find himself surrounded by. The school will more than likely make it a point to not single out that he is the “kid with the camera” and help and support him to adjust as well as possible. A world of opportunity has been opened to him that was not there before. Congratulations Avijit.
I am so happy for Avigit, he has been given the opportunity to reach his full potential. I don’t think he will be made fun of, I think other children will be in awe of his strength and maturity. This doesn’t feel “cumbaya” to me, Zana obviously knows these kids very well and has been with them every step of the way. I’m sure she didn’t plop him into an ivy-league school, brush her hands off and call it another day in the life of a bleeding heart liberal. In the movie, there was a great deal of perserverance on Zana’s part, she became a steady, positive force in their lives. Obviously this has made a great impact on their lives and Avigit just happens to be the kind of person with tremendous potential, and incredible strength. Why would anyone want to stifle that out of fear of failure on his part? Harvard, or NYU or the Art Institute need more people like Avigit. If he decides to return to India, India needs more people like Avigit.
It’s not ours to judge whether Avijit and his family or any of the other children in the film recognize the difficulty they would face if they were to leave their family and support systems in India. It’s also not ours to judge whether they SHOULD or SHOULD NOT choose to move to America because of the opportunities. In a way that is also assuming that they would be happier here because of material things in a way…surely they will recieve more opportunities, but not necessarily happiness. Zana made it clear to Avijit before going to school that he had a choice and that’s what we also must remember when considering other people’s situations, even if we are more privileged -they should still have the freedom to make the choice. If one wants to help, he or she can teach, lead, and aid in processes all they want, but in the end the people who are being helped should make the choices in their own lives.
which school did avijit get into?