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Memoirs of Saira & Salim
Film
2018
14 mins, Hindi
The film intimately follows the titular characters as they revisit their abandoned home, a place marked by the 2002 riots in India. The film explores the lingering impact of an incident that has slipped into the fringes of the nation’s collective memory. Seventeen years later, Gulbarg Society remains in an abandoned and dilapidated state. Nature has taken over the man-made, but the walls still reek of horror from the carnage.
In February 2002, a devastating three-day of inter-communal violence engulfed India following the tragic burning of a train in Godhra, which led to the deaths of Hindu pilgrims. This event triggered widespread violence, particularly in Ahmedabad, where Muslim communities were brutally targeted, and their homes and shops were set aflame. The Gulbarg Society massacre on February 28, 2002, stands out as a particularly grim episode, with a mob attacking a predominantly Muslim society.
Physical spaces that have witnessed violence continue to mark people’s relationship to history and memory. Saira and Salim's return to Gulbarg is a reflection on the intersection of personal and collective histories, underscoring the enduring impact of violence on individual lives and communities.
Cinematographer, Director & Editor To watch the film, please write to me at eshwarya.grover@gmail.com