India, Oct. 17 -- When film-maker Sreemoyee Singh set out to explore Tehran's winding lanes and artistic undercurrents in search of the voices shaping Iranian cinema, she wasn't merely documenting a nation, but following the quiet pulse of resistance, art, and hope that breathes through its stories. Her documentary, And, Towards Happy Alleys, born out of six years of exploration, courage, and empathy, brought those stories to light - and to Chandigarh on Thursday (October 16). Before a special screening organised by The Thinkers Collective in collaboration with Kirrt Collective at Tagore Theatre, Sreemoyee shared her extraordinary journey of filming in Iran, where art often exists in defiance of restriction. "There is this indomitable spirit among Iranians, which is reflected in their movies too. They live life like it's their last day. What I have captured in And, Towards Happy Alleys are the early stirrings of what would later grow into the 2022 Iranian revolution, led by women protesting against an oppressive regime," she says. Sreemoyee was fascinated by Iranian cinema and the works of feminist poet Forough Farrokhzad, and she went on to shoot her documentary as a personal travel diary over several years. And, Towards Happy Alleys also highlights Sreemoyee's encounters with Iranian filmmakers and activists, including Jafar Panahi, Mohammad Shirvani, and Nasrin Sotoudeh, among others. "Their stories reveal the precarious existence of artistes and critics living under censorship, where imprisonment, surveillance, and professional bans remain constant threats. It also documents how the Islamic Republic's strict censorship shapes the lives of Iranian women, whose boldness has placed them at the forefront of the country's protests," the film-maker says. Speaking about her deep connection with Iran's creative spirit, Sreemoyee, who holds a PhD on 'The Exiled Filmmaker in Post-Revolution Iranian Cinema', says, "Being the first non-Iranian filmmaker to make a documentary in Iran after learning Farsi allowed me to converse intimately with those I filmed." "Every frame demanded trust from them, but I was fortunate enough. Knowing their language bridged the cultural gap to a great extent and even granted me access to their underground music scene," she says, reflecting on the challenges of working in Iran, where even carrying a camera can be an act of quiet rebellion. Sreemoyee's documentary, which premiered at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival and later featured at CPH:DOX (Denmark), Thessaloniki (Greece), DMZ Docs (South Korea), Jio MAMI (India), and Docpoint Helsinki (Finland) among other fests, is her love letter to the Iranian art and an unflinching portrayal of courage under constraint....