‘Swatantrata Ka Amrit Mahotsav Ka Vigyaan Filmostav’, a science film festival to highlight the role of Indian scientists, science communicators and teachers in the Indian Independence movement will be held between August 13 and 15 to mark India’s 75th year of Independence.

This film festival will be organised by Vigyan Prasar, an autonomous organisation of the Ministry of Science and Technology (S&T) that is dedicated to science communication popularisation for over three decades. Vigyan Prasar is jointly organising this film festival with Vijnana Bharati (VIBHA), an NGO, CSIR-NISCPR and Films Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India.

Documentaries, docu-drama, animation, short videos (up to 60 minutes) made in the last five years will be showcased in the ‘Swatantrata Ka Amrit Mahotsav Ka Vigyaan Filmotsav’. The themes chosen are – the role of scientists in India’s freedom movement, and Science and Technology in India during 1947 or pre-independence.

The film festival is part of the year-long festivities that would be dedicated to those scientists, science communicators and teachers who struggled and sacrificed their personal gains and careers against the tyranny of the British during the Indian Independence movement.

“The film festival is a part of the year-long celebration, where Vigyan Prasar will showcase the involvement of Indian scientists in the country’s freedom movement. From a digital standpoint, this festival will bring to the Indian populace a web portal – www.swavigyan75.in – which has been designed to act as a single access point to all the information on the Mahotsav,” said Nimish Kapoor, senior scientist with Vigyan Prasar and coordinator for the film festival.

Keeping in mind the pandemic situation, the film festival would be held virtually and would be available for viewers on Vigyan Prasar’s social media platforms such as Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/vigyanprasar), YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/VigyanPrasar1/) and even Vigyan Prasar’s website (https://vigyanprasar.gov.in/), apart from the special portal created for the year-long festivities (https://swavigyan75.in) and that of Films Division (https://filmsdivision.org/), Kapoor said.

The films will also receive awards. The first prize will fetch the winner Rs 1,50,000 with a trophy and certificate; the second prize winner will get Rs 1,00,000 with trophy and certificate while the third prize winner will get Rs 75,000 with trophy and certificate.

“Indian scientists’ love for their motherland was manifest in their work. The British brought science to strengthen their rule in India and they allowed very limited access to Indians. But they continued to suppress those people and discriminated against them. This, however, helped in strengthening the Swadeshi sentiment,” said a former scientist at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai and VIBHA’s national organising secretary Jayant Sahasrabudhe, in his write up for a special issue by Vigyan Prasar on the occasion.

Dates for the 11th National Science Film Festival of India will be announced during the festival in which special competitive categories would be introduced on scientific and technological developments in India during the last 75 years.