Bow Barracks: Beyond the Red Bricks directed by Vaidyanath Nishant

Set in the by lanes of the vibrant yet nostalgic Kolkata, this documentary delves into the red structures of Bow Barracks, one of India’s oldest Anglo-Indian community settlements. The Barracks were built during the World War I to serve the British soldiers. But when they did not want to leave the comforts of Fort William (now Vijay Darg), the Anglo-Indians were moved there. A community with a glorious past during the colonial rule now lives in here along with many others. The Bazaar is nested between other cultures from the Parsi Dharamshala to its West and a Buddhist Temple to its East. The number of Anglo-Indian families have shrunk from what it used to be and the Barracks currently is a resident to Anglo-Indians, Anglo-Chinese and people from other parts of Bengal and India.

This documentary is a historical account, recording stories from Bow Barracks and sharing it in the form of visual narratives. From migrations to the shrinking population and the loss of reservation to the legislative house and jobs, the journey of the residents of Bow Barracks has a lot to teach us. The warmth with which the residents welcome you during Christmas, to the conversations one can share, the Barracks have a lot to tell. This documentary is hence an attempt to listen to the Barracks.