Few know that before the Landings of Normandy, there was the Battle of Kohima. Regarded as the Britain’s greatest battle by the British National Army Museum, this crucial chapter of the Second World War has somehow missed the cinematic focus of filmmakers. Before memories of the intense battle fought between the Japanese and Allied forces in the dense jungles of Manipur and Nagaland fade away for forever, noted filmmaker and critic Utpal Borpujari has documented the good, bad and ugly of this crucial piece of military history in Memories Of A Forgotten War. Filled with interesting anecdotes, the 109-minute documentary dispels many myths that surround the Siege of Imphal and captures the Indian angle in the battle as our soldiers were on both sides of the divide. While Indian National Army sided with the Japanese, the Allied forces were a curious blend of different nationalities.
Excerpts:
What was the catalyst?
The idea to do something visually on this subject had been playing on my mind for a long time because of two reasons: The Second World War changed the history of our planet, and it's the subject of so many films and documentaries across the world, but the incidents that happened in Manipur and Nagaland are hardly known to the outside world except among military historians and families of those young soldiers who lost their lives there. Secondly, and more importantly, from the point of view of Second World War, the Battle of Kohima was a turning point in that it was the first time that Japan got defeated at the hands of the Allied Army and after that it never won any battle in the war. But such an immensely important piece of history remains untold.
Tell us about the canvas of the film and research undertaken
My idea was not to focus on the military strategies or the who-won-who-lost kind of outlook. That is for military historians to analyse. And a few documentaries made from Britain earlier had dealt with the subjects from these points of view. Both I and my producer Subimal Bhattacharjee agreed that the film needs to talk about the futility of the war, and also that it is important to record the voices of those who actually fought in that difficult terrain and the locals who suffered immensely because of a war that they had nothing to do with. My idea was to make a film on war from a humanist point of view. There are so many stories of great courage, humanity and comradeship there that it was difficult to decide what to keep and what to keep out.
We did not creatively want to keep out any aspect of the subject, be it the Indian National Army’s advance to Manipur along with the Japanese Army or the fact that the locals still continue to suffer from the after effects of war in that many people have lost their lives and limbs in explosions from ammunition from that era in the following years till now. We researched widely in the UK and Japan to find out surviving veterans from both sides, and also within India to find out the surviving Indian soldiers who fought as part of the Allied Army. We received great support from people in both the countries, and also from the family members of the veterans who we interviewed for the film. We have shot the film in India (in Delhi, Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh), the UK and Japan.
At the Renkoji Temple: (from left) Utpal Borpujari, the priest and Subimal Bhattacharjee with some residents of Tokyo
Tell us about interesting ‘discoveries’ that make it a compelling narrative
One of the most interesting discoveries for us was the house in Moirang near Imphal where the local headquarters of INA was established. The house still has the original INA signboard and its tin roof still has the bullet holes from the time of the war. Another great experience was to be able to shoot inside the Renkoji temple in Tokyo where the purported ashes of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose are kept. Photography - even still photography let alone video - is strictly prohibited inside the temple, but we were allowed to extensively shoot there. We have the visuals of the urn in which the 'ashes' are kept. We still don't know what prompted the temple authorities to give us the permission to shoot there, but we are immensely grateful for that kind gesture. The film, for the first time ever, has visuals from inside the Renkoji temple. Another very interesting nugget of information that comes out in the film is that ex-US president Barack Obama's grandfather had served as the cook of one East African unit of the Allied Forces in Imphal.
Does it dispel some myths about the Battles of Kohima, Red hill and Shangshak?
Around 60,000 Japanese soldiers lost their lives in the battles that were fought in Manipur and the hills of Nagaland, and most of them, perhaps more than 80 per cent, lost their lives to diseases like malaria, dysentery as also lack of food while they were returning on foot after the Battle of Kohima. The highway from Kohima to Imphal is also known as the Road of Bones because for many years after the war, the skeletons of Japanese soldiers who died of diseases and malnutrition were lying on the road side. It's an immensely moving story.
The film has some interesting ‘characters’...
We have the late Gordon Graham, who later formed the Kohima Educational Trust in the UK to help poor Naga children study in schools as gratitude towards the help the Nagas had provided to the Allied soldiers. We have villagers near Moirang who describe the cruelties of war that they had witnessed. We have the last interviews of two great war heroes of India - Lt Gen JFR Jacob and Brigadier T Sailo.
Tell us about the role of Indian soldiers in these battles and role of the Indian army in preserving this military heritage
Many Indians fought as part of the Allied Army. The most interesting fact is that Indians fought from both sides - the INA was on the Japanese side. Basically, our soldiers fought against themselves. In a memorial at Shangshak in Ukhrul district of Manipur, you see names of Marathas. Elsewhere, you see names of soldiers from Jat Regiment, Assam Rifles, and so on. It is unimaginable to think that hundreds of thousands of soldiers had fought in the terrain that is still very difficult to traverse. The Indian Army actually needs to recognise the contribution of the soldiers who fought there. The members of INA are celebrated, and rightly so. But those who fought as part of the Allied Forces are not. They were doing a professional job, and they deserve respect for the bravery they showed. If not for the Indian soldiers, the Allied Army would not have perhaps won the Battle of Kohima.
What are the takeaways? Has time healed the wounds...
Yes, time has definitely played a healing role. My film shows two soldiers from either side talking to each other, and that symbolises the healing process. For many years, both sides were strongly inimical to each other, but slowly they realised the futility of it all. In fact, the film strongly focuses on the futility of war and violence - and perhaps that makes it very relevant today also.
(The film will be screened at the ongoing Woodpecker International Film Festival in Siri Fort Auditorium at 6.20 p.m.)
