Empowering the World's Documentarians

Ipshita Bhattacharyya

(She / Her)

Independent Filmmaker, Reel Nomads

New Delhi, Delhi India

Available for Freelance

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About

We are all made of each other and even in our individualism we are all connected. It is this dynamic interlinking of human experiences that inspires Ipshita to tell stories. Working as an independent filmmaker, Ipshita explores storytelling through the intricate facets of nature, culture and conservation. With a background in television production, she worked extensively as a director / producer on several travel documentaries, from exotic landscapes to remote villages from 2005 till 2017. As the Creative Director with NDTV network Ipshita worked on conceptualising and directing content for branded social campaigns which were important tools for raising public awareness on social issues and brought experts, celebrities, bureaucrats, political leaders and the public onto a shared platform. In 2017, Ipshita founded a filmmaking collective Reel Nomads (a team of freelance artists) that works towards crafting compassionate stories, which trigger inspiration and create dialogue. Her work is purpose led and through her collective she brings in an inherent understanding of grassroots India and its cultural, social and environmental challenges. In the past 7 years, her work has led to documentary projects with many social development organisations and international broadcasting platforms, creating films on environment, climate change, gender, social justice and culture. Her passion is to swim against the tide and go deeper into forging real bonds with the community, capturing intimate emotions and serve the common goal of leaving this world a little better than before.

Featured Work

Main Bhi (#MeToo)

Women domestic workers give voice to real stories of harassment and discrimination, asserting their right to a safe workplace The fear of losing their livelihood prevents women domestic workers from making a formal complaint. The shame that society puts on them bury these stories deeper. But when these stories come together to become a collective voice, their vulnerability transforms into something powerful and dynamic.

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The Bleeding Tides

The Bleeding Tides documents the impact of climate change in the low lying islands of Sundarban, India and its disproportionate impact on the women’s health and well being. Presenting the various lived experiences of women from the island villages of Patharpratima & Gosaba blocks, which are some of the worst affected villages of climate change, the film takes us into their daily lives. The impact is multifaceted and complex. Increasing salinity and rising sea levels are directly affecting women’s menstrual and reproductive health. A public health crisis that needs our attention.

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Water Diaries

Chhattisgarh presents a poignant case of climate change influenced challenges in the lives of its farming community. Agriculture and its allied sectors provide income to around 80% of the rural population in Chhattisgarh and constitute 16% of state’s GDP. Of this agriculture- dependent population, more than half are marginal farmers, reliant on rain-fed mono-crop agriculture, making them most vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR) has ben working extensively in 10 villages of Baikunthpur block, Korea district, Chhattisgarh, aimed at enhancing climate resilience among agricultural-dependent tribal communities. Simultaneously, the project also seeks to foster sustainable alternative livelihood sources, while improving the health and nutritional well-being of women and children, thereby increasing female contributions to the local economy and ultimately improving the community’s standard of living.

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