At a pivotal point in Shaunak Sen's Oscar-nominated documentary, All That Breathes, a voice-over echoes, "We are all a community of air." This might sound like a poignant poem, but it is a profound statement that asks us to pause for a moment, look around, and take a long breath to realise that we are just a tiny speck in this world... sharing the same air with other living beings.

Director: Shaunak Sen
Featuring Saud, Nadeem and Salik

The 94-minute documentary, while reflecting on the selfless and determined mission of two siblings--Nadeem, Saud and their assistant Salik-- to rescue and rehabilitate injured birds, also serves as a remarkable reminder that, unlike humans, the air that lets us exist does not clasp on differences.  

In the first and longest shot, we see rats, dogs, insects, and more fill up the frame as it graduates to brightness from pitch dark at the backdrop of moving vehicles. This set-up of capturing visuals of several living organisms, from ants, pigs, frogs, and worms to monkeys, in the backdrop of the city, reoccurs in the film to show how humans and these animals exist in this concrete jungle. Such frames set the mood of the film throughout. It almost feels like Roger Goula's moving background score slowly rows us into the clangorous noisy and narrow lanes of Northern Delhi.

The self-taught bird medics Nadeem and Saud have a small space in the basement of their dilapidated house building. As Salik brings in a bunch of carton boxes of injured birds, predominantly kites, one of the brothers begins the treatment. Once it's done, they are kept in the makeshift shelters on their terrace. Riveting visual language by cinematographers Ben Berrnhard, Riju Das, and Saumyananda Sahi, breathes fresh air into the documentary, as the frames not just paint breathtaking visuals but also subtly underline many emotions. One such visual is a wide shot that shows how a wall divides a bird infirmary and a garage where machinery is repaired. The pregnant pause when Salik stares eye-to-eye with the birds and Nadeem and Saud have an uneasy conversation, in-between moments of silence, lets us sink into the depths of their unexpressed emotions. The indicative edit style features injured birds in the cage and the other birds flying high, free-spiritedly in the sky, reiterating how a motion picture is worth a million words.

The documentary, which has a neat blend of soothing voiceovers and gripping dialogue, informs us about how the brothers, who started selling soap dispensers in their teenage to earn money to treat birds, went on to recognise this as their mission. However, in some places, the conversations needed a bit more organic approach instead of the staged feel it ends up having. We also get a sneak peek into the psyche of birds, and it is interesting to observe the insights like how urban birds adapt faster to changing environments and above all, about co-existence and why it is essential to protect birds.

All That Breathes also throws light on the medics' unwavering dedication which, for instance, sees Saud and Salik swimming across a chilly river to rescue a kite while Nadeem tirelessly treats several dozens of injured birds in one go. However, it is not all rosy for the trio. They don't let the odds bog them down. Shaunak strikes gold in juxtaposing the trio's selfless deed with the nation fighting for and against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The moment when the siblings' family dabbles the concern over their citizenship, conceding the identity crisis, and ther family members contemplating joining the protest dart a poignant mark in the film, and it stays with us even after the credits roll. The political rallies on the streets and news channels reporting the horrendous 2020 Delhi riots, the subsequent bombing, gunshots, and bloodshed reverberate in the background as the trio perseveringly strive to get funding for establishing a sophisticated wildlife rescue centre. Besides that, the documentary also makes powerful statements about air pollution, the perils of landfills in Delhi and its effects on living beings.  

Shaunak's narrative style of seamlessly weaving similarities and differences between birds and humans makes it an engaging watch. It could also draw the attention of audiences that are not used to watching documentaries and lets us want to know more individuals like Saud, Nadeem and Salik. Towards the end, the trio set the recovered birds free and as they watch them fly high in the horizons, it resounds with their yearning for Azadi... Azadi from societal fissures, religious riots, and apathy. The yearning for humankind to understand that humanity is needed for all that breathes to breathe... peacefully.