It is not so often, when watching films, that I find a character who is simply exhilarating. But Hardeep Singh, an Indian Sign Language (ISL) poet, is definitely one such: when he signs poetry—for those having hearing loss, as he does—it has an exquisite beauty that makes your heart soar. It made me feel, if only for a brief moment, the poverty of words heard, that he so richly describes with his eloquent hands, his eyes, his whole lithe body. He’s a star, no doubt. His rap videos in ISL on YouTube are not a patch on his original poem, that he signs in Niharika’s film The City That Spoke to Me. The documentary is on how those having hearing loss—or other challenges—negotiate spaces for themselves in the city. Made in collaboration with artist Pakhi Sen, it was part of Film Southasia (FSA), the biennial documentary film festival held in Patan, Nepal, last month. The festival, committed to nurturing the idea of South Asia, celebrated its 25th anniversary.

Nepal is a relatively open society, especially congenial and affordable for South Asians; Indians get a visa on arrival. The festival is led by founder-Chair Kanak Mani Dixit, the South Asian visionary, Laxmi Murthy, Director, The Southasia Trust (TST) and head of the Hri Institute for Southasian Research and Exchange, and FSA Director Mitu Varma. It screened 71 documentaries (nine of which were by Nepali filmmakers) from eight South Asian nations, with panel discussions on the films, gender and caste issues, and an exhibition on sexual violence. I was a panellist for the discussion on ‘Create, Curate, Collaborate: Making and sharing art during and post-pandemic.’ The Ram Bahadur Trophy for Best Documentary went to Bani Singh’s Taangh (Longing, India); the Jury Award went to Pooja Gurung and Bibhusan Basnet’s The Big-Headed Boy, Shamans and Samurais (Nepal). The Tareque Masud Best Debut Film Award was shared by Ashish Kumar Nayak’s Into the Sea (India) and Bishal Magar’s Gurkha 
Girl (Nepal).