Documentarian Captures India
By Melissa Commodore, 09.22.05

Newport News, VA- Documentarian Zana Briski teaches Indian children photography in order to allow the children to share their daily struggles through the power of photography.

Briski is best known for her documentary “Born into Brothels,” which won an Oscar in 2005 for Best Documentary Feature. Briskis’ film captures the transformation of children born into prostitution in the red-light district of Calcutta, India.

Briski first traveled to India in 1995 after receiving her master’s degree in theology and religious studies from the University of Cambridge.

When a friend introduced her to Calcutta's red-light district in 1997, Briski understood immediately that she had come to India to film the lifestyle of the prostitutes in the brothels.

Briski said, the Indian women moved her, which led her to document the harsh physical and social realities of their lives.
During the filmmakers three years in India, Briski started a non-profit organization, which empowers marginalized children in India to comprehend their life experiences through the use of photography.

Since the creation of her documentary, Briski was named the 2005 Lucie Humanitarian Award recipient for her achievements in film. Briskis work on female infant murder earned her a fellowship with the New York Foundation of the Arts, and National Press Association Picture of the Year Award.

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