Local director’s work to showcase on television

There seems to be no stopping of local director, Enver Samuel. With directing titles such as Masterchef and Survivor South Africa under his belt, Samuel proudly announced the release of his ultimate masterpiece documentary: Indians can’t fly.

The documentary is set to be aired on SABC 3 on 1 February at 7.30pm.

Samuel based the documentary on the life of Ahmed Timol, a 29-year-old Roodepoort teacher and anti-apartheid activist. Timol sadly fell to his death from the 10th floor of the security police building in Johannesburg in 1971. The documentary is narrated by Timol’s nephew Imtiaz Ahmed Cajee, author of Timol: Quest for Justice.

A police inquest concluded that Timol committed suicide while under interrogation, but questions remain whether he may have been pushed, or tortured to death and thrown from the window. It has been suggested that the roadblock at which Timol was captured was set up specifically to trap him – which could mean his murder was premeditated by police.

Samuel’s interest in the case was piqued in 1996, when he heard Timol’s mother give testimony to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). “It was an extraordinarily emotional moment, even in the context of the general environment of emotion that characterised the TRC.

“I have since followed Timol-related activities in the media, such as the naming of the Ahmed Timol Secondary School by President Mandela; Imtiaz’s book launch and the posthumous award of the Order of Luthuli in 2010.”

Finally, media coverage on the Secrecy Bill and access to Timol’s security records in November 2011, triggered Samuel to make contact with Cajee.

“After a number of years, we have produced a documentary on one of the unsung heroes of our struggle,” Samuel concluded.