By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On the second day of 12th International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala (IDSFFK), the participants got a peek into the aesthetic world of Manju Borah, who is a non-fiction jury at the film fest. Addressing the gathering, the award-winning Assamese film director said: “People initially thought I am a feminist. Yes, my films are women-centric and talk against the male dominating society. But I am not that kind of feminist,” Manju Borah said during the in-conversation session. “I truly believe that women must enjoy liberty and freedom. I rather like to concentrate on the socio-political and cultural issues prevailing in the society in my films” said Manju. Responding to audience queries, Manju said that in a democratic country like India, filmmakers should have the freedom of expression as it is a strong media for communication. Talking about Assamese film industry, she said, “Assam’s commercial film industry is still nascent. Only very few films become commercially successful in a year. The government is trying to promote the industry.” She also added that the Assamese filmmakers always looked at the Malayalam film industry in awe as even the new-gen filmmakers come out with innovative themes. ‘Documentaries function as strong medium of expression’ T’Puram: It takes grit and determination to overcome barriers to attain success. On the second day of the IDSFFK, Shabnam Sukhdev’s ‘Peacock Plume’ takes the viewer into the life of an Odissi dancer Subada Varadkar who fights cancer by practicing dance. The other ‘Rooting for Roona’ is a take on humanity transcending boundaries and explains the life of a little girl Roona who is born with a birth defect, causing her head to swell largely. The two documentaries were the talking point at the second day of the IDSFFK which is taking the city by storm. Subada who attended the screening was happy with the response. “After watching my autobiography turned into a documentary, I realised how the latter functions as a strong medium of expression,” she said.

Stay updated with all the Latest Thiruvananthapuram headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.