In memory of Swagat Sen

On the evening of 25th February, 2012, when we just started asking people to back our project financially, we came across a woman in front of Screen One. When we approached her she turned around and called a man in a low voice. The man was talking to someone else. He just turned his face and said calmly, "Go on, give them". The woman handed over a Rs. 500 note to us. We were overwhelmed. Till that time we never really expected such an amount of contribution from anyone. We didn't even know them personally and it was only the 5th time we approached someone. As soon as the conversation was over the man turned to us and said "Ya, you guys. Keep it up. Let this festival be over, I'll contact you." This act of generousity had really encouraged us to move on. It was a kind of assurance that we were doing the right thing. "Your email id please sir", we asked. "Yes, email id, write down", he said, "swagatsen@gmail.com"

Sadly, he'll never contact us again. Mr. Swagat Sen has passed away on the night of 5th August, 2012. He was there when we needed it the most. He didn't even know us, but did something that we can never forget. It was a pat on the back, something everyone expects from someone elder. Later we came to know he was a co-founder of the BYOFF and the guy who gave the festival its name. May his soul rest in peace.