The Crossbill News Desk
At the 82nd Venice Film Festival, debutant filmmaker Anuparna Roy made history by winning the Best Director award in the Orizzonti section for her feature film Songs of Forgotten Trees.
The film, which explores the struggles of women trapped in a patriarchal society, was widely acclaimed by critics and audiences alike.
During her acceptance speech on September 6, Roy used the global platform to highlight the plight of children in Palestine, drawing the attention of those present at the ceremony.
“I want to take a moment and talk about something which is very bigger and very disastrous happening in Palestine. Every child deserves peace, freedom, liberation and Palestine is no exception. I don’t want any clap for this. It’s a responsibility to think for a moment to stand beside Palestine. I might upset my country but it doesn’t matter to me anymore,” she said.
Speaking later to The Times of India from Venice, Roy, who hails from Purulia in West Bengal, emphasized her role as a global citizen.
“The Palestine issue is a global crisis where a powerful country like Israel is destroying justice, peace and lives. It is shameful. As a global citizen, I must speak about these problems and suffering. I had a microphone and couldn’t restrain myself from addressing it,” she remarked.
Roy described her award as a victory not only for herself but also for Purulia.
“It’s a victory for the faith of people and for Rangamati. I want to thank my camera crew, including Debjit Samanta, Sakyadeb Chowdhury, Debjit Banerjee, Rohit Raj, Harsh Patel, Aditya Pandit, Pradeep Vignavelu, Anjali Mulge and Aditya Raj,” she added.
Songs of Forgotten Trees tells the story of a sex worker and aspiring actress in Mumbai whose sugar daddy provides her with an apartment, which she sublets to another migrant woman from north India. The narrative explores how both women remain trapped in a straight, male-dominated society, unable to express their true feelings for each other.
“My film also shows how these two women are stuck in the same routine of a straight, male-dominated society. They are not able to express their true feelings for each other until they clearly see how the world around them is like a closed circle, built and controlled by men,” Roy stated.
“In cinema, we women are rarely seen as we are. Instead, we are often sugar-coated through the male gaze, packaged, labelled, and filtered through imposed political, religious, and social frameworks. My film resists that. It attempts to reclaim the space where women exist not as symbols, metaphors, or vessels of ideologies, but as themselves,” Roy explained.
Her bold stance and artistic achievement at one of the most prestigious film festivals have been hailed as a significant moment in Indian cinema, underscoring the power of storytelling as a vehicle for social change.
The film, which explores the struggles of women trapped in a patriarchal society, was widely acclaimed by critics and audiences alike.
During her acceptance speech on September 6, Roy used the global platform to highlight the plight of children in Palestine, drawing the attention of those present at the ceremony.
“I want to take a moment and talk about something which is very bigger and very disastrous happening in Palestine. Every child deserves peace, freedom, liberation and Palestine is no exception. I don’t want any clap for this. It’s a responsibility to think for a moment to stand beside Palestine. I might upset my country but it doesn’t matter to me anymore,” she said.
Speaking later to The Times of India from Venice, Roy, who hails from Purulia in West Bengal, emphasized her role as a global citizen.
“The Palestine issue is a global crisis where a powerful country like Israel is destroying justice, peace and lives. It is shameful. As a global citizen, I must speak about these problems and suffering. I had a microphone and couldn’t restrain myself from addressing it,” she remarked.
Roy described her award as a victory not only for herself but also for Purulia.
“It’s a victory for the faith of people and for Rangamati. I want to thank my camera crew, including Debjit Samanta, Sakyadeb Chowdhury, Debjit Banerjee, Rohit Raj, Harsh Patel, Aditya Pandit, Pradeep Vignavelu, Anjali Mulge and Aditya Raj,” she added.
Songs of Forgotten Trees tells the story of a sex worker and aspiring actress in Mumbai whose sugar daddy provides her with an apartment, which she sublets to another migrant woman from north India. The narrative explores how both women remain trapped in a straight, male-dominated society, unable to express their true feelings for each other.
“My film also shows how these two women are stuck in the same routine of a straight, male-dominated society. They are not able to express their true feelings for each other until they clearly see how the world around them is like a closed circle, built and controlled by men,” Roy stated.
“In cinema, we women are rarely seen as we are. Instead, we are often sugar-coated through the male gaze, packaged, labelled, and filtered through imposed political, religious, and social frameworks. My film resists that. It attempts to reclaim the space where women exist not as symbols, metaphors, or vessels of ideologies, but as themselves,” Roy explained.
Her bold stance and artistic achievement at one of the most prestigious film festivals have been hailed as a significant moment in Indian cinema, underscoring the power of storytelling as a vehicle for social change.
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