Bread and Belonging
a film by Sonia Filinto
50 Min I English, Konkani and Kannada with English Subtitles I 2020 I India
Watch the film online on the BIC website from Dec 17th - 23rd, 2020
Swati Dandekar will be in conversation with the director on December 22nd, 7:00 pm IST.
Viewing is free and open to all.
Synopsis
As Goa, India’s smallest state, comes to grip with growing migration, three stories unfold around pão, Goa’s unique bread. Stories of people dealing with migration, changing culture and the ever present need to earn a living.
At a traditional bakery, Alzira’s family has been baking bread for generations. They might be ‘insiders’ but are challenged to find local Goan workers in this labour-intensive trade. The survival of the bakery thus depends on the daily toil of family members. Not far away is another bakery run entirely by ‘outsiders’. Kiran and his co-workers set out daily at the crack of dawn, cycling for miles to deliver bread. Displaying the tenacity of migrants, they adapt to a new trade, new language, and even new diet. While the two bakeries labour on, a returning migrant, Marius, is has set himself the task of reclaiming bread of the past. He hits the streets determined to achieve his goal.
Goa’s bread, pão, successfully made the journey from outsider to insider under Portuguese rule which lasted half a millennium. Now, traditional bakers are leaving the trade and a new set of bakers from across the state border fill in, even as nostalgia for this unique bread grows.
Credits
Director: Sonia Filinto
Producer: Mamta Murthy
Cinematographer: Saumyananda Sahi
Editor: Rikhav Desai
Sound Design: Sanjay Maurya & Allwin Rego
As Goa, India’s smallest state, comes to grip with growing migration, three stories unfold around pão, Goa’s unique bread. Stories of people dealing with migration, changing culture and the ever present need to earn a living.
At a traditional bakery, Alzira’s family has been baking bread for generations. They might be ‘insiders’ but are challenged to find local Goan workers in this labour-intensive trade. The survival of the bakery thus depends on the daily toil of family members. Not far away is another bakery run entirely by ‘outsiders’. Kiran and his co-workers set out daily at the crack of dawn, cycling for miles to deliver bread. Displaying the tenacity of migrants, they adapt to a new trade, new language, and even new diet. While the two bakeries labour on, a returning migrant, Marius, is has set himself the task of reclaiming bread of the past. He hits the streets determined to achieve his goal.
Goa’s bread, pão, successfully made the journey from outsider to insider under Portuguese rule which lasted half a millennium. Now, traditional bakers are leaving the trade and a new set of bakers from across the state border fill in, even as nostalgia for this unique bread grows.
Credits
Director: Sonia Filinto
Producer: Mamta Murthy
Cinematographer: Saumyananda Sahi
Editor: Rikhav Desai
Sound Design: Sanjay Maurya & Allwin Rego
THE DIRECTOR
Sonia Filinto was born and raised in Goa. She has worked as a producer on documentary films and television shows. Shifting Sands is her earlier film on the traditional fishing community of Goa. Sonia’s writings have featured in print and online publications including the People’s Archive of Rural India.
