Parama: A Journey with Aparna Sen

Synopsis

Aparna Sen is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actress of international renown who started her career with Satyajit Ray's 'Teen Kanya'. This is the first ever attempt on film to take stock of her six decades in cinema, as an actress and as a director. The film draws Sen into a conversation about her life and work, her intellectual and artistic influences, and her own subsequent forays into acting and direction. Sen has made 17 films and is the only woman to have ever won the National Award for Best Director, twice for her debut 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981) and Mr and Mrs Iyer (2002).  

The structure of the film is such that the director Suman Ghosh (who directed Aparna Sen in one of his films) takes Aparna Sen in a walk down memory lane to visit the locations where she had shot some of her iconic films. She reminisces about the days of her shoot and in the process the documentary delves into her films and the impact it created in the history of Indian cinema.    

The film also draws some of Sen's most influential colleagues and collaborators into conversation about her life and work to situate her and her work in a historical context. 

The film also pays tribute to a witness of Indian cinema in a time of exceptional ferment who still champions religious and other ethnic minorities, champions pluralism and diversity.