Subimal Bhattacharjee releases “Inspite Of The Fence”; Tale of a village torn apart by the border

If you know Subimal Bhattacharjee, you would know that he is full of stories. An avid reader, frequent flyer, former country head of General Dynamics and one of the most respected experts when it comes to data and analytics and cybersecurity Bhattacharjee has always been actively involved in a wide array of socio-cultural activities. Today at GC College Silchar, he unveiled his new project ‘Inspite of The Fence’ a documentary that sheds light on the tale of a village, which got torn apart in 2011 as the fence erected in the Indo – Bangla international border.

The film is about the villagers of Mahadevpur located in Katigorah. “It showcases their happiness and sadness and pride in being Indians,” says Bhattacharjee. As the producer and director of the documentary, Bhattacharjee wanted to bring alive the story of those villagers who had no say in the country getting divided and yet had to suffer.

“I got into the project to highlight their life to the whole world: they live a sad and yet happy life. I felt that a documentary would provide an opportunity for people to understand what a fence could do in having emotional moments for people,” added Bhattacharjee.

The film left an impact even before it released. Bhattacharjee made the film with the permission of Border Security Force as he needed access to both the side of the fence in order to shoot his film. He found out that the BSF is very close to the villagers and help them in every possible way. As he kept working on his documentary, the BSF officials got involved more and more. The more Bhattacharjee got to know about the village and its residents the more he shared with the people he met.

He shared the story of Vivekananda LP School which was established in 1959 and was in need of aid. BSF officials visited the school and eventually decided to adopt it. Now the BSF maintains the LP School which provide villagers access to education.

Bhattacharjee’s effort to tell the story of Mahadevpur was recognised by the BSF wives welfare association (BWWA). In October 2017, Bhattacharjee was felicitated by Minister Smriti Irani for his efforts.