To Conquer Her Land is about India’s first women soldiers of the Border Armed Force in India-Pakistan Border of Punjab and Kashmir. A story of the silent invisible faces and their hopeless pursuit in trying to make a better life fighting the patriarchal society. I am trying to humanize complex intricate issues of poverty, conflict, psychological warfare, youth, gender, love, peace, home, an undefined idea of patriotism, strength of the mind, and a new born stress that was previously unknown. Compelling stories that are uplifting, intrepid yet stuck in limbo. Finally, an unflinching account of how these women come face to face with the truth of conflict and the realities of living the life of a young soldier.
On September 2009, India’s first ever batch of women soldiers of the Border Armed Force, Hindus and Muslims (aged 17-25) were deployed at the India-Pakistan borders in Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir.
I spent time with some of these young women at their boot camp, homes and eventually at the zero line exploring and documenting their transformation from a woman to a soldier. Somewhere during my journey I began to comprehend the acute realities of this job. They may be soldiers now, but the harshness of the desolate border has taken its toll. This transformation is so intense, that it is almost impossible to recreate or restore what they’ve left behind. One land that is so vast that all lines seem to disappear, yet a deathly silence that is so white, haunting and exact that it can create peace even in the land in the brink of war.
In To Conquer Her Land is about these silent invisible faces of the country’s forces and their hopeless pursuit in trying to make a better life fighting the patriarchal society. I am trying to humanize these complex yet intricate issues of poverty, conflict, psychological warfare, caste, youth, gender, love, peace, the concept of home, an undefined idea of patriotism, strength of the mind, and a new born stress that was previously unknown. Compelling stories that are uplifting, illuminating and intrepid yet stuck in limbo, dwelling in stillness. I have produced an unflinching account of how these women come face to face with the truth of conflict and the realities of living the life of a young soldier.