It's commendable that The Voice of Hind Rajab—the heart-wrenching story of a six-year-old girl’s hours-long wait for an ambulance amid the Gaza war, whose dramatised version has won global acclaim—has been showing on big screens across India. Kudos to the distributors for playing one of the most important docudramas of the era in multiplexes. But the near-empty halls it has been showing to points to a lack of promotion. It also highlights a widening gap in the film screening business. There are indies, shorts and documentaries that have their own niche followings, but do not find places to screen. The response to Film Heritage Foundation’s screening of restored classics in Mumbai showed there is demand for blasts from the past, too. We need a larger number of smaller screens in our big cities.
