WANAKAM MOVIE NIGHTS: CHARDI KALA — An Ode To Resilience + LIVE Q&A with Prateek Shekhar
Join us in the living room for an evening of deeply moving independent cinema and historic grassroots resistance. For this screening, we bring you the award-winning documentary Chardi Kala - An Ode To Resilience, a raw, intimate look into one of the biggest non-violent protests in modern history.
About the Film
In September 2020, following the passage of three agricultural laws aimed at liberalising the farm economy, farmers from across India gathered at the borders of New Delhi. For an entire year, they braved extreme weather conditions and state hostility, sleeping and cooking on national highways until the laws were repealed.
This remarkable one-person-crew documentary observes, listens, and documents the farmers' comprehensive arguments against the corporatisation of agriculture. More than just a political chronicle, the film explores how the Sikh principle of ‘sewa’ (selfless service) and the expression ‘chardi kala’ (eternal optimism) became the guiding lifelines of the movement, imbuing it with an indomitable, joyful spirit of community dignity in the face of apathy.
Accolades & Awards:
🏆 Best Feature Documentary – South Asian Film Festival Montréal 2024
🏆 Jury Award – Film Southasia 2024
🏆 Second Best Long Documentary – 15th IDSFFK, India
Dinner & Service
Dinner Service: For those with dinner tickets, your Curry Bowls can be served any time before 19:20.
Late Arrivals: To protect the quiet, immersive atmosphere of the room once the film begins, hot food service stops at 19:20. If you arrive later, don't worry—we will serve your dinner during the film’s interval.
The Plan
19:00: Doors Open (Café open, dinner service begins, settle in)
19:20: Dinner Service Pause
19:30: Film Screening: Chardi Kala (96 mins | Punjabi and Hindi with English Subtitles)
Post-Film: Open floor for community reflection, chai, and conversation
About the Space
Wanakam is a South Asian cultural café and community hub in Amsterdam Oost. We reject flat clichés and superficial stereotypes, choosing instead to celebrate the depth, plurality, and lived complexities of the South Asian diaspora and subcontinent through food, art, film, and honest conversation.
Come, grab a bowl, and let's enjoy the movie and chat together!
With warmth,
The Wanakam Team