The filmmaker Baljit Sangra talks to Joseph Planta about her first feature-length documentary Because We Are Girls, a National Film Board of Canada production, debuting at DOXA, the Documentary Film Festival.

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.

One of the more fascinating and compelling films to screen at DOXA, The Documentary Film Festival is Because We Are Girls. It is the first feature-length documentary from the filmmaker Baljit Sangra, who joins me now to discuss her film, and the spotlight it shows on sexual violence on a South Asian Canadian family. An Indo-Canadian family in small-town British Columbia, Williams Lake in fact, have to contend with a secret. It will overwhelm the family, as if keeping silent all these years hasn’t been devastating enough. Three sisters were sexually abused by an older relative, and after nearly twenty-five years they decide to come forward. It’s to protect other young relatives, but also to be an example for their daughters. It’s a moving film, that shows the intimate moments of a family through home movies, as well as how they deal with the justice system now. The film also tells the story of how families like the one central to the film have been shackled by tradition, pride and the fear of shame. The film looks at how those traditions and expectations are enforced by Bollywood. Baljit Sangra is a filmmaker who has been nominated for the Leo Award three-times. Her previous films include Hockey United, Many Rivers Home, and Warrior Boyz. Because We Are Girls is a National Film Board of Canada production, and will be screening at DOXA: Friday, 03 May 2019 at 7pm at the Vancouver Playhouse, with members of the family attending, and Tuesday, 07 May 2019 at the Vancity Theatre at 6.30pm. That screening will be followed by a panel discussion. Visit www.doxafestival.ca for tickets and information. @baljitsangra604 is her Twitter handle. This film shows how abuse can break family, and from that, demonstrates how it can heal. Go see it. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Baljit Sangra; Ms. Sangra, good morning.

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