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Taken at the flood

Maya Rao talks of her experience when shooting for Mumbai Mega Flood

Nature’s fury The programme deals with the deluge of July 26, 2005

Maya Rao is eminently suited to direct the documentary “Mumbai Mega Flood”, a chronicle of the events of July 26, 2005, when 944 mm of rain fell on Mumbai in 24 hours. “I was in the middle of all the action,” Maya says. Maya, who helms the immensely popular “M.A.D” show said: “I was shooting with children on that day. My first concern was to reach them home safely. I reached home only on the second evening so you can say that I was one of the victims!”

Maya says the show “asks questions like was the flood a man made disaster or a natural one. The film can be looked at as a warning. It urges people to open their eyes and see where development is headed.”

The programme Maya says deals with multiple themes. “Like development need necessarily mean destruction. We should learn to work in tandem with nature. The programme also celebrates the courage of the people.” The show looks at the incident from all sides. “We have taken every perspective, including the views of the meteorological department and the people who were caught in the deluge.” Maya says that not much archival footage was used. “We have recreated some scenes. What struck me was people were more than willing to come out and share their experiences.”

Shooting a programme like this meant many memorable moments, but the one that struck Maya the most was “shooting at the orphanage. We were doing a story on an orphanage where one of the children, Aasma, being the tallest, carried the children on her back to safety. I told the authorities that rather than cast actors, it would be better to recreate the scene with the children themselves. I was really touched and amazed with the courage the tiny tots showed during the shooting.”

The one-hour programme was shot over four months and reveals the extraordinary tenacity, survival skills and basic humanity of a city under siege. “Mumbai Mega Flood” will air on July 15, at 8 p.m. on National Geographic.

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