Adhunika Meets Dina Hossain

Sawsan Eskander

Seldom do we get an opportunity to meet such an inspiring role model for Bangladeshi women. On July 11^th, as we were settling in and waiting in anticipation, Dina Hossain walked into Igloo Café located in the cute Greek neighborhood of Astoria. Dina, an award-winning filmmaker/producer and currently the deputy creative director of the International Freedom Center (IFC), was going to share her experiences in the field of filmmaking, a rather unconventional career for a Bangladeshi woman.

Gyros and sandwiches and milkshakes were ordered, followed by some light conversation that transitioned into a round of introductions initiated by Shahnaz Yousuf, the founder of Adhunika. Faika Farzana, Cal Jahan (Shumon), Iqbal Ahmed, Sohel, Sharani Zaman, and myself Sawsan introduced ourselves to the small group. Interestingly, I learned something new about everyone at the table, in spite of knowing them for quite sometime now. It amazes me how one can never know enough about an individual. That evening we were all very excited to have Dina amongst us and were eager to get to know more about her and hear about the challenges and triumphs that she has faced along her path to success. Following are some of the questions we captured in our conversation that evening, enjoy reading them:

Shahnaz: Tell us a little bit about yourself, where did you go to school, what did you study?

            Most of my secondary education was in Bangladesh (Scholastica and Holy Cross). I then came to the US to pursue my undergraduate education (and somehow stayed on ever since. Not quite sure how that happened). I studied Public Policy at Princeton University.  I then went to New York University to pursue a masters in Anthropology and Film.

Sawsan: How did you get interested in making documentaries?

Quite by accident.  When I was an undergraduate, a friend suggested I look at the NYU graduate program in Anthropology and film.  While enrolled in the masters program, I realized that I enjoyed the process of documentary film making, more than I enjoyed the academic side of the program, and decided to pursue a career in documentary film making.

            I also knew that I wanted to be involved in a career where one could make a difference in people's lives. I hoped that the programs I worked on would raise questions about important political, social and cultural issues.

Sawsan: What kind of films will you be focusing on in the future?

            I would like to do more documentaries about Bangladesh. I am also interested in making documentaries for a Bangladeshi audience, rather than for US media.

Sawsan: How do you think we could inspire/train Bangladeshi women to get into this field?

          I don't think it is just a question of inspiring/training Bangladeshi women. It would be good to have more programs in general for both men and women in Bangladesh to pursue careers in the arts.

Cal: Knowing what you know now, how differently would you have done things early in your career?

I think I would have been more confident about my ablities and started working on my own ideas a lot sooner.

Labiba: How do you see yourself 20 years from now?

20 years from now I would like to be working between Bangladesh and either New York or London. I'd like to have made several documentaries about issues I care about, that have helped raise awareness about subjects that don't often get raised by the media.  

Labiba: If you were given three things to change about the world - what would they be and why?

Wow, that's a tough question. Currently I am reading a lot about sustainable design and the environment. I think that is a big issue on a planetary scale. We have to deal with the fact that the way we are living today is not sustainable and we need to do things, both on a individual, national and global level to improve the environment.  

Labiba: Which famous MEN have inspired you and why?

            I guess my father has been inspirational.  He taught me about being a moral person.  Through his example I learnt that it was more important to work to help other people, to make a difference in the world, than it was to make a lot of money. 

Sharani: Does your future career plan incorporate venturing into  Bangladesh?

Yes. I would very much like to make more programs about issues that are important in Bangladesh.  However, it is quite hard to raise money, at least in the US, to make documentaries about Bangladesh for the US media.   

Sharani: There are many pressing issues in BD that is worth getting attention in a documentary form...which entices you the most or which social matter is on top of your priority list?

            There are many many issues that I would be interested in making films about.  I've recently been reading a lot about the impact of shrimp farming, both on the environment and in terms of working conditions of the farmers. I'd like to make a film about the issue, and tie it into issues of globalization.  I'm also interested in how the reduction of the quota system for garments industries has affected workers, and what has happened to many of the women who were employed in these factories.

Shahnaz: Who is been the most influential person in your life?

            On a personal level, I think both my mother and sister had been tremendously influential.  My mother is a very non judgmental person and has always been very supportive of the decisions I have made about my life.  Even if she didn't always understand or agree with them, she always encouraged me to do what I want.  My sister has been very influential because she has been the one to introduce me to knew ideas, books, subjects that I might not have been aware about.  She pushes my thinking about things even if I don't always want to be pushed.  

Shahnaz: Any suggestions for the young women who wants to follow your footsteps ? Few words for the reader of Adhunika.

Being a documentary filmmaker is a hard life.  It involves long hours, lots of stress, and very little financial reward. However, it can also be the most exciting of jobs - for each film you get to learn about a whole new subject, you get to interview amazing people, and often travel all over the world. The advise I have for other young women who want to become doc. film makers is the advise a friend and fellow film maker gives to people who ask her if they should go into this field "if there is anything else that you love doing, if there is anything else you would be happy doing, do it. If on the other hand, you can't think of anything else you would rather do, then you should become a film maker."

More on: Dina Hossain