CiNEmatters by Firstpost: Episode 1 — 'Jwlwi: The Seed'

CiNEmatters

Host: Arshia Dhar

Theme Music and Editing: Sourjyo Sinha

Artwork: Adrija Ghosh

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Episode 1: Jwlwi: The Seed (2019)

Language/Region: Bodo/Assam

Streaming on: Moviesaints

Director: Rajni Basumatary

Cast: Rajni Basumatary, Shimang Chainary, Queen Hazarika, Sattyakee Dcom Bhuyan, Jayanta Narzary, Kanyakorn Kiratichotiyangkoon
In our first episode, we are joined by our guest Kaustubh Deka, professor of political science at Assam's Dibrugarh University, to talk about Rajni Basumatary's film Jwlwi: The Seed.

For the uninitiated, Basumatary played Priyanka Chopra's mother in the 2014 Hindi film Mary Kom, and is also seen playing the protagonist Alari, in this film.

Alari is an everywoman living in the insurgency-riddled 1990s' Assam, who loses her husband to the conflict. Years later, her son Erak joins a banned outfit, only to thrust her life into complete disarray, shattering her hopes of ever leading an ordinary life with a family. Jwlwi allows us to enter this fraught terrain where people are assigned markedly different roles based on their gender, religion, tribe and language, with women being relegated to the margins of their households in a hyper-masculine machinery of unrelenting violence.

In this episode, we explore how the film is located in Assam's and the North East's history and socio-political landscape, besides examining how Basumatary's screenplay was heavily influenced by her personal life, and the role the army played in bringing her film to life.

Tune into CiNEmatters on Firstpost’s YouTube channel, Spotify, Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, and wherever else you listen to your podcasts.