This film is part of Free
Indian Life
A motorist's excursion captures a world made by hand in the environs of Rawalpindi, Lahore and Karachi
Overview
This evocative amateur film gives us a sense of life in what is now Pakistan, just seven years before partition. Near Rawalpindi's Fawara Chowk junction, the magnificent Markazi Jamia Masjid mosque and the Mohan Hindu temple in Mandir overlook peddlers of the Raja and Lunda bazaars. Overhead wires, bicycles and a few cars hint at modernity but the scene is otherwise timeless. The Grand Trunk Road provides a motor route from Pindi to Lahore revealing everyday life in between. Cosmopolitan Karachi concludes the film, with a family dip in the Arabian sea.
This was one of a collection of well over 100 films shot by prolific amateur filmmaker John C. Jewell to document his travels (as well as his sporting interests). Jewell travelled extensively in Europe, Africa and elsewhere with his Swiss-made 8mm cine camera, but his films around India between 1940 and 1945 are among the collection's highlights.
Related
An Eastern Market An Eastern Market
Travelogue 1928 9 mins Silent
Documentary detailing a farmer’s visit to the market in Rawalpindi
Kagan Valley Kagan Valley
Amateur film 1931 15 mins
Amateur travelogue of the Kagan Valley and Darband, Pakistan.
Lahore - Badshahi Mosque Lahore - Badshahi Mosque
Amateur film 1933 7 mins Silent
Extraordinary home movie footage of prayers in the Punjabi capital
Our Garden - Jhelum Our Garden - Jhelum
Amateur film 1945 12 mins Silent
This amateur film captures Colonel and Mrs Lord's garden at Jhelum, as well as soldiers at Karachi.
Life in Hunza Life in Hunza
Amateur film 1937 11 mins Silent
Fertility rites and wine production: life in the Hunza valley in northern Pakistan.
Frederick Wiseman's High School - a discussion Frederick Wiseman's High School - a discussion
Short documentary 2026 22 mins
Filmmaker Andrea Luka Zimmerman and curator Matthew Barrington discuss Frederick Wiseman’s High School with Sandra Hebron.
A Last Resort A Last Resort
Comedy 2022 17 mins
Rose is desperate to celebrate her 60th birthday in style, but her daughter Genevieve is struggling to ignore some recent tragic news about her mum.
Hard, Cracked the Wind Hard, Cracked the Wind
Horror 2019 17 mins
A haunting with words is the lure between life and death for a young Cornish poet.
The Walk The Walk
Drama 2023 12 mins
Adeel Akhtar portrays a man on a weekly trek to his nearest JobCentre, entering a state of purgatory through barriers put in place by the system.
Seagull Seagull
Horror 2022 6 mins
Seagull is a recovering drug addict who is about to have a very strange night on The English Riviera.
Octopus Octopus
2021 13 mins
Upon returning to her home town for a funeral, a young woman reconnects with the friends she left behind.