New Delhi, Aug 24: Haobam Paban Kumar�s 77-minute documentary film AFSPA-1958 bagged the top prize in documentary category of the SIGNS 2006- the Festival of Documentaries and Short Films in Video for the John Abraham National Awards held at Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala from August 10-15 under the auspices of the Federation of Film Societies of India, South West Region.

The documentary film has also been selected in the competition Section for the 10th Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentaries and Short Films in Egypt commencing from September 15.The top prize was shared by another documentary - Waiting directed by Atul Gupta and Sabnam Ara which portrayed the human stories of despair and agony in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.

The three-member jury headed by noted film personality Saeed Akhtar Mirza chose AFSPA-1958 as the best documentary of the competition for its strong documentation of the contemporary political situation that exists in the State of Manipur.

The jury report says, �The jury viewed more than 20 hours of film and was struck by the remarkable passion and range of subjects that the films displayed.

�The liberating quality of video as a means of expression to document the struggles and lives of ordinary people was amply revealed in this selection of films.

�Choosing one film above the others for the awards was an almost impossible task.

Heart wrenching accounts from Kashmir, struggles of ordinary people against State oppression in Manipur, the struggles of retrenched workers in Tamil Nadu, the pain of tribals who went as indentured labour to Assam, the rural-urban divide, environment disasters created through mis-management and callousness, personal biographies and accounts of disillusionment were all explored.

�The task to judge them was not easy.

We commend the great spirit of documentary film making today in the country today.

These films hardly ever see the light of day but the fact that they get made is of the utmost importance�.

The jury also felt that, from the films it viewed, those that came into documentary category were much more adventurous and innovative in their styles of presentation, whereas in the fiction category they were far more conventional.� AFSPA-1958 which candidly captures a series of incidents after the killing of Th Manorama by Assam Rifles bagged two international prizes in the Mumbai International Film Festival of Documentaries, Short and Animation Films this year organised by the Government of India.

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