Hot Docs 2024: Devi (by Subina Shrestha) | Review
Subina Shrestha’s Devi powerfully exposes Nepal’s silenced female voices in the aftermath of war, as Devi Khadka fearlessly fights for justice amidst a culture of impunity.
From 1996 to 2006, Nepal underwent a civil war, pitting Maoist rebels against the reigning monarchy, during which numerous crimes, notably rapes, were perpetrated. Despite the establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission after the war, it’s evident that “so far, only crimes suffered by men have been addressed. Crimes directed at women have been ignored.” How could it be otherwise when the ruling party urges citizens to “forgive and forget”? In her feature-length documentary Devi, which premiered at Hot Docs 2024, director Subina Shrestha highlights Devi’s commitment, the originator of the aforementioned statement, in a fight to acknowledge these war crimes and seek justice for the countless victims.
In this eponymous documentary, Devi, due to her personal history, manages to collect and acknowledge the voices of the victims. Because Devi Khadka is one of the survivors of these war crimes. She experienced the unimaginable when, at seventeen, arrested by the ruling regime for rebellion, she was raped numerous times during her detention. Very few rape cases have been officially brought before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and none have been prosecuted. Worse, some perpetrators now hold important positions within the government. “How do I contend with a Party that has welcomed my own rapist into their rank? It’s humiliating,” confides one victim to Devi. Victims rarely dare to speak about what they’ve endured and do not report their assailants because, in Nepal, women who are victims of rape are marginalized from society, held responsible for the shame that befalls them. Having served in ministerial positions in the post-war government, which gives her access to the highest echelons of power, Devi is compelled to speak out on behalf of these numerous victims. “Neither you nor I have received justice. But you can lobby in high places,” pleads one victim whom Devi visits.
Through her camera, Subina Shrestha makes us feel Devi’s tension, torn between the need to amplify the voices of thousands of rape victims and her duty as a mother. Because speaking publicly about this taboo risks exposing her and her family to reprisals. It is also to halt the threats that she agreed, after the war, to publicly forgive her assailants. The documentary skillfully alternates between intimate scenes, at the heart of Devi’s home or when she visits victims who confess what they’ve experienced, archival footage to contextualize current narratives, and scenes in which Devi confronts government officials or stakeholders in the Truth and Reconciliation process.
In Devi, Subina Shrestha brilliantly delivers the portrait of a woman who makes the courageous choice to overcome her fears and traumas and engage in a difficult battle to acknowledge the rights of female rape victims in Nepalese society. An engagement that resonates with the growing global movement to empower victims of rape to speak out.
