Zana risky is a documentary photographer
and she came to Kolkata to photographs
the lives of women who were working in
the red-light district now while she was
there she interacted with their children
she befriended them and she offered to
teach them or share her knowledge of
photography with them just the basics so
what she did was she gave them cameras
and they were taught how to click how to
frame how to aesthetically look at a
photograph and they were sent on the
streets to to visualize and tell stories
or whatever appealed to them they used
to come back with the photographs with
the negatives
she used to develop them and then used
to sit down with them and discuss what
they clicked and why they click now what
was beautiful about this first because
as a photographer you see the world the
way we’ve grown up we have a very
different way of viewing things but over
here the stories were through the eyes
of children who were often neglected who
overlooked who were just running around
from house to house doing household
chores now this was a moment for them
which hopefully would maybe enable them
to look at life in a different way and
make others see what is happening in
these houses what is like to be the
child of a woman who you know I mean
when you see the documentary it’s a
beautiful documentary keep our dialog
akima mizuhashi cam 36 / Dalek Allison
or hung aside okay I’m up now come cut
that out and so it’s so normal so called
normal for them and what the sad thing
is that the girls they know key
eventually this is what they have to
become because they don’t know any
better if they want to go to school then
they are not allowed because they want
to know parents got a criminal record
hey Chilly and so on
so the on of risky she was not a social
worker she was not a teacher but this is
something that she wanted to do the
photographs were then collected and
there was a exhibition
happened in Kolkata where public and the
media was invited and was a huge success
one of these boys from the from her
students who had not even stepped out of
Kentucky who knew the lanes of his only
the lanes in and around his house he did
not have a ration card forget about
having a passport he went on to
represent India in a worldwide photo
conference in Amsterdam and for that the
only 9 students are also Globo selected
for this constants only because of Donna
who took that initiative and there was
no motive involved she just wanted to do
it’s almost impossible to photograph in
the red-light district it’s a whole
separate society within itself I mean
you just walk down that one lane and
it’s another world
and of course as soon as I entered the
they were all over me and I would play
with them and take their photographs and
they would take mine but that’s when I
thought it would be really great to
teach them and to see this world through
their eyes from the perspective of eight
children
Connor Hollow yummy totally it’s already
look at a key Baba taki led by the
compassion of one woman take your time
to look and make sure everything in the
whole square looks good he’s really good
at photographing on the street because
she’s very strong yeah the children
asked me for help they asked for it all
I mean there’s so little I can do all I
can do is try got our liaison matter
there’s so much information in this
picture it’s just a beautiful photograph
labrum seek thing erotic itches shrewd
eye
come on honey can you sweetie I’m not a
social worker I’m not a teacher even but
without help
they’re doomed these kids want to be out
of there
are there any boarding schools that
would take them No
is the right place no we didn’t take
them from the streets of Calcutta my
goal now is to raise money for them
using their own photography to an
I think he’s reached a critical point
and if he doesn’t get out of there
really soon he’s lost you and you and
you have been accepted into a screw I
deal with that with eight children
people ask me why do I come and do this
work there’s no rational reason born
into brothels so learn to see learn to
think film presents the story of a
courageous vision and the children who
made it happen
in another part of the world in another
year in Memphis there was this tortured
without home without any money this boy
called Michael in the same city there
was a lady called Yan Michael was
separated from his drug addict mother at
the age of seven he had no father he
went to the same school as Leanne’s
children solely on one day she saw that
Michael was in the campus and he was
taking leftover food and eating that and
saving that for the next week so she
went up to him and spoke to him Anna and
realized that he has no place to stay no
money to buy any clothes and it was
winter so she invited on home and she
gave him food hope her family she then
went to the school to speak to the
teachers only to find out that in his
career aptitude test he had scored in
negative the score was really really low
but in his protective instincts he had
got a 98 percentile so what she did was
that he used this characteristic his
this attribute and use that as a
teaching method and changed him as a
footballer used to play football so I’m
sure most of you maybe have seen in this
[Music]
not cutting I’m just asking let me tell
you something all right we’ve been
sitting around here for over an hour and
when I look around all I see are people
shooting the bowl and drinking coffee
not gonna help you oh he was first no
you go ahead
I think I want to hear this me too you
aren’t excuse me you’re right how those
words taste coming out of your mouth
like vinegar
oh is that esta big luck he goes to high
school here what is he wearing
it’s below freezing do you have anyplace
to say tonight don’t you dare lie to me
[Music]
was this a bad idea
what’s the big deal it’s just for one
night it is just for one night right
Leanne tell me just one thing I should
know about you
unless it be called Big Mike Leah this
is another one of your charities I need
to find out more about his past he’s
been enrolled in seven different
institutions his grade point average
begins with zero he needs to do better
in school I’d love to work with him this
is mine yes sir never had one before
Michael’s grades have improved enough
that he can go out for spring football
how’s he doing I’m quite getting the
hang of it yet it’s all real nice what
you’re doing but don’t be surprised at
I heard you got you a new mama now she
fired two Michaels here tell them to
sleep with one out you threatened my son
you threatened me Sandra Bullock
practice we have and thank you later
sting is your family Michael you have to
protect him Tony here’s a quarterback
you protect his blindside when you look
at him you think of me yes ma’am that’s
likes the best left tackle I’ve seen of
so
you’re changing up always live well it’s
changing my
the blind decide I said you could thank
me later it’s later bird so michael
later went want to become an
all-american football oh why am i
showing you why am i talking about these
two fools because a they are drastically
different from each other
first one is the documentary so
obviously it’s about the real people
there are no actors portraying those
characters the second one is an
out-and-out commercial film which has
the biggest Hollywood names and that is
based on a true story
so what is common between both of them
anybody correct and there is no plan you
don’t okay like the Robin Hood army it’s
a thing they do on Sundays they don’t
know where it’s headed and guessing but
it’s just that the intention is so pure
that you start with that and you just
keep on building on or what even a new
does it is you start with something you
just ignite something in others and you
have no clue where it’ll take you do you
don’t if you don’t have the capacity to
start they say an NGO you don’t have
money for something you see where can
you stop
but do star I think all of us are
matches and phosphorus paper and that
way that all of us have the power to
spark something in each other but doing
how often do we do that when we go to
let’s say every weekend when we go out
drinking whoever goes out drinking and
if you have a friend who’s a non drinker
how many of us have sir how many times
kill our a2p Donny a glass of kool-aid
come on yaar a glass at Yoga how many of
us have done that smoking are you drag
yaar it’s cool yay Whitney Tunde is the
Messiah ham ksham llama or wherever
again but how many of us have pushed a
friend or anybody or a parents that way
for to follow a hobby or to maybe follow
a dream that’s great so but I just feel
that somehow we are becoming a more
selfish and self-centered where we only
think about ourselves
happens in mind after you lure I’m sure
it happens in all the other industries
as well were you just thinking about
yourself your growth how you’re looking
how your marriage is going to be but we
should also think about others because
trust me the benefits are just they’re
insane
so it is basically peer pressure about
but one military mark is not a they go
Rinku Quezada at America had or be it
anything to be cool to be stylish how
much money you’re spending so there is
peer pressure so why not make that pure
pressure positive use it in a move
creative one liberal more educator but
you don’t have to be preaching you don’t
have to be that Saint who’s after
somebody is like de Kooning evoke unique
a checklist when I know don’t be that
because when people are gonna run away
from you but you can definitely use it
in a lot more positive where it’s free
of course this is a product which is
absolutely it comes from within you
don’t have to force it because we you
force it it does not work it’s
absolutely depends on your time and your
will it’s a change reaction I would love
to start a chain reaction and I’m sure
all of us sitting over here isn’t it
exciting to think that something that
you start will be followed by a lot of
people just that feeling I think is one
of the best feelings in the world good
cover who doesn’t want good karma I am
sure the Robin Hood army and I know
again they are already they’ve got
gathered so much good karma and it’s
something that all of us can do with
okay this is I trust me it’s all
research I’m not making this up if
you’re in a bad mood no matter what
situation you are in but if you do
something like igniting a spark and
others it’s really really helps you
become forget being a better human being
but it just makes you lighter I’m not
offering I’m not going into a saintly
space at all so obviously it gives you
inner peace and a longer lifetime a
lower bar lowers blood pressure as well
but again no cream in the world no soap
in the world I do lots of either I am
Telling You nothing can do the magic
like this stronger friendships if your
support people
you love the bond just becomes bigger
and better and stronger how do okay now
obviously this is something when I’m
when I’m saying this might sound very
simple but what is the most important
thing is the intention because every
intention is not there no matter how
much you talk to somebody or how many
times you repeat yourself it’s not going
to make a difference so the intention
with which you talk is the most is a
primary thing listen watch observe even
in down to brothels born into brothels
or blindside it’s not like you can you
cannot just go out and even if the
intention is there if you want to help
people you need to see who are the
people you want to help there has to be
a plan but also they cannot be a plan
you can just go out and see what people
are lacking or maybe share whatever
knowledge you have with them how can you
help you know whatever capacity it could
be it could be psychological it could be
financial it could be physical it could
be anything but it’s not rocket science
trust me do you know anyone else if you
can’t help anybody
then if suppose you are not good in math
and somebody needs maths tuitions and
ken do you know somebody else who can do
that or again I am giving the example of
the igniters sitting over here because
we’ve just heard about the wonderful
stories it’s a whatsapp group that they
talk like it doesn’t get more basic and
simple than that so if he is busy in the
meeting I’m sure there’s somebody else
who can go distribute the food so it’s
very simple all we need to do is get
going
follow up follow up is very important
because obviously sometimes you have bad
days sometimes you can work there are
prior commitments the personal
commitments but we need to follow up
with each other also with ourselves
share your knowledge in whatever
possible way it could be so what can we
write now sharing ideas and knowledge or
it could be on a one-to-one basis but
never think that the knowledge and the
experience that you have will not help
somebody trust me everybody I just hear
people out and it will make a huge huge
difference so that is it I truly believe
in this
you [Applause]