Registrations are invited for a Course on Social Justice, Love, and Hate: Epistemologies of Empathy at Sambhaavnaa Institute, Palampur, HP.
This immersive course aims to take participants on a journey through the lived experiences of impoverishment, discrimination, hate, violence, and the resilience of vulnerable and dispossessed communities in India and across the world.
Rooted in the framework of empathy, this course aims to use story-telling through cinema to create a space for ethical reflection and critical analysis, fostering deep engagement with social justice issues through the power of cinema.
A carefully curated selection of films and feature-length documentaries from India, South Asia, the Arab world, and Europe will serve as the vehicle for cultivating empathy, prompting discussions on the human condition, poverty, hate, dispossession, resistance, and hope.
The course will take place over six days, with three film screenings each day followed by in-depth discussions. Each film will be introduced with a brief contextual overview of its social and human narratives, as well as its aesthetic qualities.
The films will act as an entry-point for exploring larger themes such as the politics of hate, inequality, state power, and forms of resistance. The entire group of participants will act as facilitators of the course, engaging with and responding to the complex questions raised by the films.
The course is open to individuals of all ages, genders, and vocations and hopes to attract a mix of students, homemakers, working professionals, artists, social workers, and retired people. It will appeal to those interested in social justice, human rights, cinema, art, literature, public policy, law, and related fields.
Comfort with English-language subtitles will be required, as the films will be in various languages.
The program invites a diverse group of concerned citizens—those interested in understanding and addressing the rising tides of prejudice, inequality, and hate in contemporary society. The goal is to create a space for critical reflection, emotional engagement, and empathy-building.
By the end of the course, participants will:
Interested candidates can register online via this page.
13th to 18th May 2025, Sambhaavnaa Institute, VPO – Kandbari, Tehsil – Palampur, District – Kangra, PIN 176061, Himachal Pradesh
We hope that participants will contribute an amount of Rs. 6,500/- towards workshop expenses, including all on-site workshop costs (boarding, lodging, and all the materials used in the workshop).