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Members enjoy dialog with an Indian filmmaker

About 30 members and guests enjoyed a documentary about the roots of Indian civilization and a dialog with filmmaker Kamalini Sengupta Nov. 13 at the union.

The writer and producer showed her documentary “In the Beginning,” the first of a 20-part series exploring India’s history and culture. The DC 37 Asian Heritage Committee sponsored the event.

The film examines the origins of the Indian people, the development of their civilization from cave people to the influx of foreign settlers and the impact of religion on contemporary society. The series aims to counter prejudice, clear the air of misinformation about sociocultural and historical issues and show the overwhelming commonalities and enriching differences throughout the country.

After the screening, Sengupta took questions from the audience that sparked a spirited exchange of views about misconceptions of the country’s history, religions and culture that the film addressed.

“The evening was very enlightening and thought-provoking,” said Asian Heritage Committee Chair Maf Misbah Uddin, who is treasurer of DC 37 and president of Accountants, Statisticians and Actuaries Local 1407. “The discussion was far-reaching, exploring the roots of war and the complex culture of the subcontinent with its diversity of religion and ethnicity.”

“I felt the documentary was thoroughly researched and extremely well presented in terms of its content and camerawork,” said Bhagwatie Dwarika, a co-chair of the committee and program coordinator with the DC 37 Education Fund. “The documentary does a remarkable job bringing together the vast range and richness of India’s history and cultural development in less than an hour.”