Shekhar Kapur is coming up with a new animation movie Brides of the Well, centred around water conservation. This is Kapur’s new attempt on water conservation, since his previous project Paani couldn’t be completed. However, that has not precluded him from making a movie on the same issue again.
The new animation movie by Shekhar Kapur is going to be narrated by Bend it like Beckham and ER star, Parminder Nagra. “The burden of fetching water is predominantly borne by women and girls, preventing them from reaching their full potential. This affects their education, health and livelihood opportunities. This must change,” added WaterAid India chief executive V.K. Madhavan.
The film tells the story of Saraswati and Paras, two teenagers living in Punjab, Northern India who are forced into child marriage and a life of servitude, centred around walking long distances to collect water for their ageing husbands.
The filmmaker has joined hands with WaterAid to create a short animation Brides of the Well, adapted from a story written by Kapur himself. It draws attention to water scarcity issues and the impacts it has on women and girls globally.
Though fictional, Kapur’s film highlights the plight of young girls across India relegated to a life dominated by walking long distances to fetch water. “Water is one of the world’s most precious resources. But for those who live with water on tap, it can be difficult to imagine how life would be if the water wasn’t so accessible,” Kapur said.
WaterAid worked with visual storytelling agency Nucco Brain to bring the story to life, with creative input from Kapur and music composed by Yao Wang. The feature released on 11 October to mark International Day of the Girl.
