Fighting for justice

“In our region, a Dalit woman journalist was unimaginable.” So says Meera, chief reporter for the Indian newspaper Khabar Lahariya. She’s featured in the 2021 documentary, Writing With Fire, now available on Amazon and other platforms.

Meera and her team of female Dalit reporters come from India’s untouchable caste, often excluded from Indian life. But since 2002, they’ve defied expectations with compelling, on-the-ground reporting. As Meera explains early in the film, “When citizens demand their rights, it is us journalists who can take their demands to government. This is how one fights for justice in a democracy.”

For Meera and her colleagues, fighting for justice means reporting on illegal and deadly mining practices, even in the face of threats from organized crime. It means criticizing political leaders and religious gurus who scam people. And too often, it means pressuring police to enforce laws that should protect women. In one scene, we hear from a girl who was raped. Within a week after Khabar Lahariya’s reporting, police arrested the girl’s attacker.

These women aren’t perfect. They seek worldly power and sometimes lie about their caste. But their virtues stand out boldly in a dark culture: courage, perseverance, and commitment to innovation. Some viewers won’t want to deal with subtitles and tough topics like sexual assault (not graphically presented). Those who do will find, as co-director Sushmit Ghosh puts it, “These women are showing you what true journalism and true courage really means.”