Anurag Singh is an Indian documentary filmmaker known for his socio-political, human rights oriented films. He has worked with mass peoples’ movements, including the

Narmada Bachao Andolan ''Narmada Bachao Andolan'' (NBA) is an Indian social movement spearheaded by native tribals (''adivasis''), farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against a number of large dam projects across the Narmada River, which flows thro ...

National Campaign for People's Right to Information National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) was established in 1996 to advocate for a legal backing to citizens right to information. This resulted in the historic and pro-people law - the Right to Information Act, 2005. More rece ...

, and

Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan The Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (Association for the Empowerment of Labourers and Farmers) is an Indian political organisation best known for its demand for the Right to Information Act (RTI) which grew out of the demand for minimum wages f ...

His most famous films are "Kaise Jeebo Re" (1997 – Narmada valley displacement), and "Right to Information" (1999 – Peoples’ demand for RTI, the landmark transparency legislation), which have been screened and won awards internationally.

Biography

Born in 1968 in Varanasi, India, Anurag comes from a small tribal village in

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

. His fathe
Shyam Bahadur Namra
was a noted poet and social reformer who worked extensively on education and tribal rights. Anurag's local wisdom and understanding are reflected in the themes and treatment of his films. Involved in photography, cinematography and filmmaking since 1984, Anurag directed his first film 'Manibeli' in 1989, and has since made more than half a dozen films including 'Battle For Peace', 'Kaise Jeebo Re' (How Do I Survive, My Friend), and 'Main Nahi Manga' (We Do Not Ask!). Anurag has also worked with Center for Development of Instructional Technology (CENDIT), an organization that pioneered using of audiovisual technology to communicate sociopolitical issues in India. In 1992 Anurag set up his own film production compan
Jan Madhyam Productions
& in 2004 Rough Cut Productions with Jharana Jhaveri.

Filmography

*1992: "Manibeli", a video on the police repression and people's struggle in the 1st village of Maharashtra State to be submerged by the controversial Sardar Sarovar Dam: Manibeli. 1992. 43 minutes. Hindi. *1992: "Battle for Peace", a video on the Burmese students in exile in India made with them. Aug 1992. 30 minutes. English *1997: "Kaise Jeebo Re! (How Do I Survive, My Friend)" A Documentary on the protest against the Narmada dam. 1997. 80 minutes. Hindi. *1999: "Main Nai Manga" a spot on the Right to Information as a basic need. Screened at Expo 2000, Hanover, Germany. March 1999 3.5 minutes. English (Digital) *2000: "Right to Information". 33 minutes. English (subtitled)

Awards

* "Right to Information" won Best Documentary, Transparency International,

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

., and was 2nd in the Best Non-Fiction award at the 2000

Mumbai International Film Festival The Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films (MIFF) is a festival organized in the city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay) by the Films Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. It ...

. * "Kaise Jeebo Re! (How Do I Survive, My Friend)" won YIDFF in 1999 in Yamagata,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Notable screenings

* "Kaise Jeebo Re! (How Do I Survive, My Friend)" was screened at the 1997

International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) is the world's largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988 in Amsterdam. Over a period of twelve days, it has screened more than 300 films and sold more than 250,000 tic ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Anurag 1968 births Indian filmmakers Living people