Sanitation Updates’ favourite to win the 2012 Golden Poo Award for best short film has to be Bum Bay. Set to the tune of the 1969 Indo-pop hit “Bombay Meri Hai” – transformed to “Bum Bay Meri Hai” – we see a mock tourist promotion film interspersed with explicit scenes of male open defecation.
The film was made by renowned Indian film advertising company Genesis run by Prahlad Kakar. In the end credits, we read:
The tragedy of this film is not what we have shown, but what we could not shoot. The women who have to sneak out between 2 & 5 am stripped of even their basic dignity to perform their natural functions cowering behind umbrellas to hide from passing headlights. A sad reflection on a great city that we cannot even provide toilets for 1/2 its people.
The judges have already made their decision, but we will have to wait until October 1st to hear if Bum Bay is one of two winners of a Golden Poo Award. Hygiene and disgust expert Dr Valerie Curtis of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine is on the Judging Panel.
The winning films will form part of Global Handwashing Day (October 15th) and World Toilet Day (November 19th) awareness-raising campaigns. In addition, they will be screened at the World Toilet Summit in Durban, South Africa in December 2012 and at the London Short Film Festival in January 2013.
The Golden Poo Award is an initiative of PoopCreative and is co-sponsored bythe Department for International Development (DfID) and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Web site: www.thegoldenpooawards.org
Sanitation Updates 
I tried to open this video link here in Kabul, Afghanistan and received a message that doing so was in contravention of the laws of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. I wonder how many other countries block access to such material?
Some NGOs can work on building toilets without waiting for Govt. to spend money – which of course comes from public funds. Instead of showing it to foreigners, show it to Indian public only. You may get AWARD, but you will also disgrace our country. I humbly request you – PLEASE DON’T SHOW IT TO THE WORLD, REMOVE FROM YOUTUBE IMMEDIATELY.
I do not endorse the award to this film. On the contrary I strongly object screening of this film in international events like world toilet day etc. The film does not carry any positive message for adoption of toilets or any other sanitary habits but only aims at defamation of India. I appeal to the creator of the film & the concerned authorities to withdraw the film even from the worldwide web & replace it with some other film giving positive message towards Open Defecation Free India– A dream of every wise Indian
There are two kind of people. Those who are the part of solution and those who are part of problem. After watching this so called film it appears that the team who made this film are a part of problem. As Mr. Srikant Navrekar suggested this film should be withdrawn immediately. If the team has really creative ideas than and than only they should spent time and money for making another film.
Soham Pandya
Director (Eco-Technoogy Division)
Centre of Science for Villages,
Wardha, Maharashtra, India
PIN 442001
Email: soham.ced@gmail.com