'To Kill a Tiger' is a 2022 documentary written and directed by Nisha Pahuja and produced by the National Film Board of Canada among others. It was nominated as the best documentary feature for the Oscars. It has nothing to do with real tigers, but deals with something more dangerous - gender politics and archaic thought in India concerning the brutal gang rape of a 13 year old from Jharkhand.
The documentary does not seek to shock nor are there any explicit scenes. However the sense of foreboding remains all through. It begins with Amit, a worker with a Srijan, an NGO fighting for women's rights, going to a village where a rape has been reported. The girl belongs to a small farmer's family and the incident happens when the entire family goes for a relative's wedding. The girl stays back with her cousins while the family goes home, and then she is raped. Kiran (the girl) has the courage to tell her parents of her ordeal, names the three offenders who are from the village (one is her cousin). The police drag their feet and do nothing. The village panchayat tries to settle the matter internally by getting her married to one of the perpetrators while even doubting her version and casting aspersions at her and her family.
Against all this the family stands resolute - the loving father who decides to fight the case and the society which is threatening to ostracize him, the mother who fully supports her child, and mostly the girl who says she will die but will not retract the case despite threats to her life. As the case goes through its own ups and downs, thanks to police apathy, the hostile villagers, death threats, the NGO's constant guidance and help, the father ploughs on through. There are times when the villagers mock the family, threaten the NGO staff and there is one point when someone says - in Jharkhand there is no fear of what may happen to them - if the villagers feel they are justified they can just catch hold of your legs and chop them off. But then the girl and her father come from the same background so they are not going to give up easily either.
In the few moments she speaks, Kiran speaks with extraordinary clarity about life, about her beliefs. It is clear that she has benefited from the clear thinking, loving and supportive parents. Her father deals with the pressure alone almost, going to courts, trying to do the best he can with his limited understanding. His main concern is that he will not be able to fully articulate what he has to say. The way he hides his rage and trudges the path of justice in the belief that it is the right way, swallowing the anger, the insults as he goes about getting justice for his daughter comes through. He believes that education will solve their problems and Kiran will have a good life. Kiran believes the same as well - her concern is that when she falls in love how will she tell her partner about her past. But she being she, did not want her identity to be hidden and chose to face the camera.
The judge gave 20-25 years of imprisonment to the boys which is a landmark judgment apparently as the highest for rape. The father calls home to his daughter after the judgment is passed and only says - you won. There is silence on the other side and some sobs. And you also cry with relief, as you feel exactly what they are going through. Similarly when Amit, the boy from the NGO has no words but cries in the end, it just shows how difficult and stressful the path has been.
Interestingly director Nisha Pahuja says that she wanted to make something on gender in India and began work on Mahendra Kumar who works with the NGO and has done good work. But then this case came up at the same time and they made this the core. Mahendra Kumar does have a significant role in the away he guides and advises the family.
'They told me you cannot kill a tiger alone,' says the girl's father Ranjit. 'I have shown them how one can kill a tiger alone. I did it.'
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