Aiming For Zero

Zero Waste is the buzzword everywhere today, and people from all walks of life are trying to be a part of it. Blame it on social media to make sustainability look cool, but conscious spending of environmental resources is the need of the hour. We talk to a few people who are already a part of this journey

- Ananya Swaroop

"Think of an elaborate scene from a series like Game of Thrones - the production would have invested in elaborate dresses for the characters, infinite props, all sorts of makeup products, and other on-screen items but additionally off-screen they would have procured n number of batteries, chemicals, zip ties, ropes, and what not to showcase their vision. Plus, there are endless plastic water bottles, food leftovers, single-use toiletries, and other essentials the crew uses during this time. Alas, once the filming is done, all of it just reaches landfills and the chemical waste is often disposed of carelessly in water," exclaims Pragya Kapoor, the co-founder of Guy In The Sky Pictures production house.

According to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, urban India produces about 42.0 million tons of municipal solid waste annually, i.e. 1.15 lakh metric tons per day (TPD), out of which 83,378 TPD is generated in 423 Class-l cities. Waste generated in 423 Class-l cities works out to 72.5 per cent of the total waste generated each day. These alarming statistics are reason enough for us to become environment-conscious. Fortunately, some Zero Waste Advocates have taken it upon themselves to bring in the change.

Kapoor is doing her bit on the sets of her films. Back in 2021, Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui created quite the buzz. The Ayushmann Khurrana starrer tackled a sensitive topic but it was also a conversation starter when it came to dealing with environment-related problems. It was shot at a zero-waste film set - a first of its kind in Bollywood. The idea came to her when her team was shooting for Kedarnath in 2018. "We ended up wasting a lot of water by the end of that shoot and that disheartened me. I just knew then that I had to experiment with green filming and I am glad we did."