Educational Media Reviews Online

Chattel slavery may be (mostly) a thing of the past but modern-day slavery is still booming in places where poverty flourishes. For those to whom this comes as a surprise, welcome to the reality of the global fashion industry, which fuels a huge demand for cotton and textiles around the world. In the case of South India, where Canadian Director Barry Stevens’ documentary film The Price of Cheap takes place, there are over a thousand textile mills and more than 100,000 girls and young women toiling away in slavery conditions every day.

The Price of Cheap takes an unflinching look at the cost that global appetites for fast fashion have on the lives of young people in poverty who are suffering to satisfy them. Using a combination of personal interviews, voiceover shots of people in action, and conversations with experts, educators, and human rights advocates, this film deftly provides entry into an alternate universe most people know very little about. Considerable time is spent following one man in particular, Mr. Joseph Raj, as he works tirelessly to rescue underage girls and children from bondage. There are striking images of scenery, people, and vivid colors throughout, and the film’s visuals are so arresting they occasionally cause the viewer to forget the dire conditions they’re actually showing us. Safety issues, harassment, accidents, and appalling injuries and deaths are a regular part of this landscape, and the film does not shy away from capturing a thorough account of this. However, there is also hope in the form of schools and people like Mr. Raj who are trying to help. Those few young women (and sometimes boys) who escape to something better have aspirations beyond their difficulties, and listening to them speak about their hopes and dreams offers some solace to the unnerved viewer of the film.

Periodically intercut with the more standard documentary features are animated scenes dramatizing unsettling events and conversations experienced by the young workers. These are highly effective in drawing viewers into a more intimate understanding of the girls’ struggles in the textile mills. In fact, the film might have benefitted from a few more of these perspective-altering animations, as they are successful conveyors of difficult moments.

Forced- and child labor are not pleasant subjects, and the awareness that one is likely contributing to it through seemingly benign fashion choices is even more unsettling. That said, The Price of Cheap should be required viewing for every person in the global West (and beyond). An awareness of the slavery conditions of the workers who produce our clothing would likely spur changes towards behaviors less inherently consumptive and damaging to others around the world. As one expert says during the film, people are willing to make changes in their purchasing if they know why and how. This film provides the why in ample measure.

The Price of Cheap will be a good selection for courses in environmental justice, fashion, women’s studies, sociology, anthropology, and business. Highly recommended.

The film is in English and Hindi dialects, with English closed captions.

Awards:
Uruvatti International Film Festival 2021, Best Documentary Feature Film Award; Nawada International Film Festival 2021, Best Social Documentary Film; Chagrin Documentary Film Festival 2021, Best International Documentary Award; London Independent Film Awards 2021, Best Documentary Award; Toronto Lift-Off Film Festival 2021, Audience Choice Award; Free Spirit Film Festival 2021, Best Documentary Award; Tiburon International Film Festival 2021, Humanitarian Award; Black Swan International Film Festival 2021, Best Documentary Film Award; Boston Independent Film Awards 2021, Best Documentary Feature Film Award; Tagore International Film Festival 2021, Outstanding Achievement in Documentary Film Award; San Diego International Film Festival 2021, Audience Choice Award; Impact Docs Awards 2022, Award of Merit

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