Suma Josson facts for kids

Suma Josson is an Indian-American journalist and filmmaker. She makes movies that tell real stories, called documentary films. One of her films, Niyamgiri, You are still alive, won a top prize at the 2010 International Film Festival of India. This film was about how bauxite mining can harm nature and people.

About Suma Josson

Suma Josson was born in Kerala, India. She later moved to the United States and studied English Literature at the University of Minnesota.

She started her career as a journalist, writing for the Press Trust of India. In 1992, she began working in visual media, which means making films and videos. She has created many documentary films. Suma Josson has also written three books: Poems and Plays, A Harvest of Light (which is a collection of plays), and Circumferences (a novel).

Her first movie was Janmadhinam. It won three awards in India and was shown at film festivals around the world, including the Berlin Festival in 1999. She was also one of five women filmmakers chosen to make a documentary called Trading Images. This film explored the idea of 'women's space' and was a project with Germany. Her second feature film is called Saree.

Suma Josson's Films

Janmadinam (The Birthday) - 1998

Janmadinam is a Malayalam language film. The story takes place over one night in a hospital. A woman named Sarasu is there to have her baby, and her mother, Amma, is with her.

Sarasu is a TV reporter from Bombay. She writes her deepest thoughts in a diary. We learn that Sarasu's father made her marry Raghu, even though she loved another man named Ajay, who was a cameraman.

Months after her marriage, Sarasu travels through Bombay to meet her husband. She meets Ajay at his apartment during the 1993 communal violence in Bombay. After this meeting, Sarasu has to make a big decision. Her mother, Amma, also realizes she needs to take a stand because of Sarasu's choice. The movie shows the quiet tension between mother and daughter and how their personal stories slowly unfold.

• Director and Writer: Suma Josson
• Main Actors: Nandita Das, Surekha Sikhri
• Cinematography (how the film is shot): Hari Nair
• Music: Narayana Mani

Saree - 1999

Saree is another Malayalam language film. It tells the story of two children, Gita and Radha. They are on their way home from school, in a special space between school and home. This space is full of their dreams, fears, and fantasies. It's a place where they can imagine anything they want. As the two young friends walk, they share their dreams in this secret world that only children can access.

Saree was chosen for the 1999 Berlin Festival. In 2000, it was the first film shown at the Mumbai International Film Festival.

• Director and Writer: Suma Josson
• Main Actors: Remya, Krishna, Nedumudi Venu, Sreelatha, Priyanka
• Cinematography: M J Radhakrishnan, K G Jayan
• Editing: Bina
• Music: Chandran Veyattumal

Gujarat: A Laboratory Of Hindu Rastra, Fascism - 2003

This is a documentary film made in 2003. It is 50 minutes long and has English subtitles. The film looks at the events in Gujarat after the violence in February 2002. It explores how extreme ideas might have influenced ordinary people in Gujarat.

See also

• Women's Cinema