‘Against The Tide’: Sarvnik Kaur’s Sundance-Winning Documentary about Mumbai Koli fishermen to have its South Asian Premier at Jio MAMI Mumbai International Film Festival 2023

After securing a prestigious Special Jury Prize in Vérité Filmmaking at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, Sarvnik Kaur’s internationally acclaimed documentary feature, “Against The Tide,” is set to make its South Asian debut at the Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2023 in the South Asia Competition Section.

Having originally premiered in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at Sundance, “Against The Tide” has garnered an impressive array of awards, including the UN Perception Change Award at Visions du Réel 2023, the Grand Jury Prize in the Documentary Competition at the 2023 Seattle International Film Festival, the Sustainable Future Award at the 2023 Sydney International Film Festival, and the Best Feature Award at Ice Docs 2023. Most recently, it clinched the title of Best Documentary at the International South Asian Film Festival in Canada and earned a nomination for the Asian Pacific Screen Award (APSA) in the Best Documentary category.

Expressing her excitement about the India premiere of “Against The Tide,” the National Award-winning filmmaker, Sarvnik Kaur, states, “I am absolutely thrilled to kickstart the journey of our film in India, commencing with Mumbai itself—the source of inspiration and the very reason for its existence. It feels like a homecoming, and I am genuinely eager to share this film with my city and its people. We cannot wait to celebrate this moment with Ganesh, Rakesh, and their families, all gathered together.”

The film’s producer, Koval Bhatia, adds, “We always aimed to launch our film domestically, beginning with Mumbai, and now, that dream is becoming a reality. We are eagerly anticipating the audience’s response here and hope that our film not only raises awareness about the issues it portrays but also transforms perceptions and attitudes towards documentaries.”

The film boasts remarkable cinematography by Ashok Meena, with editing by Atanas Georgiev (known for “Honeyland”) and Blagoja Nedelkovki. Moinak Bose serves as the sound designer, and the music is composed by Igor Vasilev.

“Against The Tide” is a co-production by Snooker Club Films and A Little Anarky Films in collaboration with Les Films de l’Œil Sauvage, with the support of esteemed organizations such as the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), Doc Society Climate Story Fund, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Catapult Film Fund, Chicken & Egg Pictures, the Sundance Institute, SFFILM, AlterCine Foundation, Région Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur in partnership with the CNC, and Procirep Angoa.

What is Against the Tide about?

This 97-minute doc  presented in Koli, Marathi, and Hindi languages, delves into the lives of two indigenous Koli fishermen in Mumbai, whose bond is tested by the deteriorating state of the sea they rely on. As they take divergent paths to support their struggling families, their friendship begins to fracture.

Synopsis:

Mumbai fishermen Rakesh and Ganesh are inheritors of the great Koli knowledge system—a way to harvest the sea by following the moon and the tides. Rakesh has kept faith in the traditional fishing methods while Ganesh has moved away from them, embracing technology. Against the Tide is a tale of deep friendship and rising resentment between the two men, against the backdrop of an adoring sea, which is increasingly turning hostile because of climate change.

Does Against the Tide have a trailer?

Yes. There’s a trailer for the documentary which was posted on the Snooker Club Flms’ YouTube channel on September 16th, 2023.