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Kimberley reviews...CALCUTTA HILTON - a must see documentary. Produced and directed by John Sinclair. Presented by Evie Ashton
So Annie and Kerry Hilton think that they can change the world by teaching some women how to make bags? Apparently so, and they're walking the talk with Freeset Bags. Sure, it's a simple concept but it's the simplicity that's the beauty of it. Freeset makes it simple for an everyday person to buy a bag that will not only serve themselves but also the very woman who made it.
Freeset Bags are about People. Freeset Bags are about Freedom. It's as simple as that. Putting this simple theory into practice is the hard part. Annie and Kerry Hilton, along with their four children, made the shift to Sonagaachi, Calcutta's largest and most infamous sex district, so as to try and make a difference in some women's lives. They've given up the freedoms they knew at home in New Zealand, like walking down the street alone or having a park to run around in, so that they can help to restore the freedom of women who never had a real chance of it in the first place. And they're doing it with the help of Priya Mishra, a Brahmin woman (higher caste in India) trained as a physician, who like the Hilton's, wants to help make a difference in the lives of Sonagaachi women and has given up the comforts many take for granted in order to do so. Together, Kerry, Annie and Priva want Freeset Bags to provide women in Sonagaachi with an alternative to prostitution, to provide them with the status of "business woman" and give them a basis upon which to rebuild (or simply build) their self respect.
Watching Calcutta Hilton, the personal ethos of the Freeset business is ever-present. And it's not just talk. You can actually see women in the background of shots making the bags that we buy, and they aren't just placed there for aesthetic value or for garnering empathy. This if for real, and among all the harsh realities of life in Sonagaachi- like prolific STDs, non-consensual sterilizations, and the general "cheapness" of life, to name a few - this reality is one that carries hope. There are no qualms about the fact that Freeset is a business, not a charity, whose primary goal is to produce a high-quality product. But Freeset is also a family and a community, where every member is valued as a person and where every member can find support when they need it. The cynic in all of us can scoff, but there is no escaping the reality that whatever the Hilton's are doing, whether it sounds airy-fairy or idealistic, they are doing something that is - there is simply no other word for it - Good. In a world where we are taught to question and challenge and doubt everything that we see and we are told, it can be hard to accept that a couple of people might simply want to make a difference in the lives of some women who need it. But that is exactly what the Hilton's with Freeset Bags, are doing. They are making business personal and liberating.
The personal ethos of Freeset is not only directed at the women whom it employs. It is directed at you. By simply watching Calcutta Hilton, learning about and sharing what Freeset Bags are doing with people you know, by buying a Freeset Bag, you are personally contributing to the Hilton's goal to make a difference. Calcutta Hilton is the best way to gain an understanding of what Freeset is all about. The documentary itself is only about twenty minutes long, hardly any time out of your day, and there is a bunch of fantastic bonus footage included on the DVD. The best of these, I thought, were the interviews where the Hiltons and some of the Freeset employees talk about their experiences in connection with Freeset. At the very least, the Freeset story, is an inspiration that really makes you question how you can make a difference too, however small.
We at Jumping Tangents want to help Freeset make a difference, which is why we are pledging a $2 donation direct to Freeset for every bag we sell. Last month the SKF group (www.skf.com ) of Auckland ordered 93 freeset bags for their staff members and two copies of Calcutta Hilton for staff training. Sundeep Rasila of SKF tells us his staff's response to the DVD was quite phenomenol. SKF matched our $2 donation for every one of the bags that they ordered and this resulted in a combined donation to Freeset of $372. Interestingly enough, John Sinclair tells us that this is almost exactly the amount required to train a new worker to manufacturer their bags.
We would like to suggest you purchase the Calcutta Hilton dvd as a staff training tool to increase social consciousness and personal motivation together with the bags themselves which make great gifts for your employees/clients/friends and loved ones.
written by Kimberley Davis, BA, Eng (Hons.)
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