Game changer

In February 2010, 32-year-old lawyer and human rights activist Azmi was shot dead at his office in Mumbai. Defending members of the group accused of the 26/11 terrorist attacks on the city at the time, the murder was seen as warning to anyone willing to represent these perceived conspirators.

To say Azmi was killed because of this individual case may, however, be deemed a little short-sighted. A controversial figure, the advocate fought a number of high-profile cases involving the imprisonment of accused terrorists and won 17 acquittals in his brief seven-year career. His clients ranged from the 7/11 local Mumbai train blast plotters to those colluding in the 2006 Malegeon bombings.

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What gives this man’s tale greater depth, though, is the fact he embarked on his college education, before taking on his Masters in law, whilst in and out of prison from 1992-1999. The heftiest accusation thrown at him at this time – an alleged conspiracy to assassinate that time Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray – itself a statutory act of terrorism.

After clearing his name, Azmi decided to dedicate his life to those he felt were disenfranchised by the system.

Shahid is Mehta’s latest movie in a 16-year period of filmmaking. It premiered in Dubai as an independent entry at the film festival in 2011 and returns on general release in the UAE this weekend, backed by production house UTV. Despite the director’s longevity, Metha has not always been proud of his output and senses this fictionalised real-life account has recaptured the spirit he always wished to portray in his pictures.

“My first films were an attempt to belong to the mainstream. I was very disappointed with my pictures and felt I was just part of a machine.

“I took a break. I wanted to find my voice as a filmmaker. I had grown bankrupt of stories. There were no vehicles for my views on the world and the anger that I felt.”

Mehta’s previous work includes his debut, Jayate (Victory, 1998), a languid tale on the Indian judiciary, medical malpractice and ordinary human lives, followed by the dark comedy Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar, a film that reflected Metha’s concern for the increasingly marginalised immigrants in Mumbai.

“I was scratching around for ideas to really put across how I felt.

Then, three-years ago the headlines screamed of Shahid Azmi’s murder. The more I read about him, I felt there was a story that needed to be told.”

The reasons for Metha’s enthusiasm for Azmi’s plight stem from an experience in Mehta’s life, which opened his eyes to an increasingly polarised world.

“Earlier I was an IT professional. I left Mumbai in 1991 for a foreign assignment. I was a young 21-year-old going abroad. I returned to India in 1994 and realised that I had come back to a very divided city.

“The (1992 Bombay) riots had taken place. There were these tensions that had grown.

“Initially I was disturbed for my city, but I saw that the world was dividing. It was no longer between Hindus and Muslims and no longer between blacks and whites.

“We rely so much on our leadership to bring about change, but as ordinary citizens we do nothing. A responsible human should do something and that is what I try to do with my films and Shahid tried to do during his life.”

With the controversy Azmi courted in his life, it was put to Mehta whether he had any trepidation in portraying the man as a hero onscreen. The artist said that he had a few reservations and warnings from certain concerned parties, but after the film’s reception in festivals including the Toronto Film Festival he feels vindicated by his perseverance.

“I had veiled threats from people who have right-wing tendencies. But, after it was made and the way it has been received, people see it as an inspiring story and one of courage.

“Shahid has become a very personal story for me. Throughout making it I have almost felt that, though I never met him, I lost a younger brother. Nothing could stop me from finishing the project and hoping that as many people can see it as possible.”