Cultural Event    

           Yesterday after finishing all of my classes, I went to Blockbuster to check out a movie named “Born into Brothels” for my cultural event assignment. It is a 2004 American documentary film about the lives of children of prostitutes in Sonagachi, Calcutta's red light district. The movie is written and directed by Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman who won the Academy Award for Documentary Feature in 2004.

        The movie introduces several children. Each of them has their own personality. However, they lack of hope because they’ve never had any educations since they were born due to no money. The young girls “cross the line” (a term they use in reference to becoming a prostitute) at a very young age, like 11 or 12 years old. Zana Briski, a New York Photographer, operates a photography class with these children where she gives each student a piece of camera and teaches them how to use it. These children really enjoy attending her class since the power of camera shows them a sense of identity. Briski also tried to find a placement in Boarding schools for these children and she has success for few girls. However, after she leaves, there are only few children staying in the school. Most of them are forced to go back to “cross the line” to make money for their family.

        This is a great movie that I highly recommend for anyone who has never seen it because it is so touching and meaningful. It shows how horrible of the lives of the families in the red light district. The mothers degrade their children. Children are forced to “cross the line” to make money for the family. It’s very ridiculous because I think children should be protected by their families. They are not the tool for making money. They should be given education during the moment they grow up. “Born into Brothels” won many film awards in 2004, such as 2004 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize - Documentary, 2004 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Documentary/Non-Fiction Film, 2004 International Documentary Association Award for Feature Documentaries…etc.

Zana Briski, photographer and co-director of Born into Brothels