Comprehensive information and links about Born into Brothels

Born into Brothels is a 2004 American documentary film about the children of prostitutes in Sonagachi, Calcutta's red light district. The widely acclaimed film, written and directed by Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman, won a string of accolades including the Oscar for best documentary feature in the year 2005.

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Making

Briski, a documentary photographer went to Kolkata (Calcutta) to photograph prostitutes. While there, she befriended their children, and offered to teach the children photography to reciprocate for being allowed to photograph their mothers. The children were given cameras so they could learn photography and possibly improve their lives. Much of their work was used in the film, and the filmmakers recorded the classes as well as daily life in the red light district.

have been transformed through money earned through sale of photos and a book on them. Ross Kauffman, co-director of the documentary, said the $100,000 (about Rs.4.5 million) made through the sale of their photos and an accompanying book has gone into setting them up for their future. Profits from the film are paying for the students' tuition and are going to building a school in India for children of prostitutes. Briski has started a non-profit organization to continue this kind of work in other countries, Kids with Cameras [1].

Directors Guild of America 2005 DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary - Briski, Kauffman2004 International Documentary Association Award for Feature Documentaries - Briski, Kauffman, Dreyfous-White, Boll