Edinburgh Filmhouse will host a free screening of Deepa Mehta's Water on Sunday December 9, at 3.45pm.
The film will be presented as part of Amnesty International's 16 days of Activism Against Gender Violence, an international campaign that links violence against women and human rights.
Undeterred by death threats from Hindu fundamentalists and her sets being burned to the ground, courageous filmmaker Deepa Mehta has crafted a subtle study of the mistreatment of widows in pre-independence India.The film tells the story of seven-year-old widow Chuya, dumped in the holy city of Varanasi, who is informed by her father that it is her fate to live the rest of her life by the banks of the River Ganges. In 1930s India, even widows as ridiculously young as her are expected to survive in poverty and pay penance for the deaths of their husbands.
When Chuya questions her plight, she is met with disdain from all except the devout Shakuntala and Kalyani, a beautiful young widow who is pimped out to local gentry to earn income for the house.
While the former doesn't question her position in society, the latter dares to embrace the love of an idealistic lawyer, bringing consequences for all.
After the screening there will be a panel discussion on the issues raised by the film.
