Four years ago, young construction worker Mahesh cycled 2,000 km alone to reach home during the first Covid lockdown. Now, he is starring in a film about his journey. But as the shoot ends and he returns to the maze of his job site, a portrait emerges—of a man trapped in an endless cycle. Blending fact and fiction, this film-within-a-film explores labor and the cold, detached gaze of cinema.
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During India's COVID-19 lockdown, 22-year-old plumber Mahesh found himself stranded over 2,000 kilometers from home, with all transport shut down. Undeterred, he strapped his belongings to an old bicycle and began the grueling ride back, arriving seven days later. His story drew national attention, with politicians visiting him and promising jobs and housing—none of which were kept. Mahesh soon returned to construction work, slipping back into the same routine. The politicians turned a blind eye, but this film—a hybrid of fiction and documentary—tells his story. As the film was being shot near Mumbai, Mahesh built a friendship with Mamta, a local resident who has lived a similar life to his. The once unfamiliar village begins to feel like home, and their growing bond brings a sense of happiness, but as filming comes to an end, anxiety resurfaces. Through the lens of one young man's story, CycleMahesh offers a moving portrait of the alienation faced by India's migrant laborers, shining a light on a vast and often invisible reality of “migration.” (CHUN Jinsu)
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Teesta Setalvad | banerjee.suhel@gmail.com
Suhel BANERJEE
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