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English /85mins/2002 A boat carrying the cargo of defiance begins an urgent journey through the Narmada valley. For more than 15 years, people of the valley have resisted a series of massive dams on their river, and in their struggle have exposed the deceptive heart of India’s development politics. ‘Words on Water’ is about the sustained non-violent resistance, that almost joyous defiance, which empowers the people as they struggle for their rights, yet saves them from the ultimate humiliation of violence. Producer: Sanjak Kak, Octave Communications Pvt. Ltd. Enquiries: Octave Communications C4/4048, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110070 Email: octave@vsnl.com Tel. 91-11 26893893 Mob. 91-98112 29952
This film explores the notion
of state ownership of natural resources. In India the state owns all natural
resources unless otherwise decreed. This is a story about Rajasthan, where 1000
villages have been revolutionized by bringing water back into their lives. Tarun
Bharat Sangh, a motley group of people, led by Rajender Singh acted as a catalyst
and inspiration for the communities and galvanized them to revive their traditional
water harvesting systems. Dry rivers were revived and communities’ general
economic well-being swelled. It sounds like a fairy tale and the results are
almost like one! Johad - “A Source
of Water” Hindi/10mins/1999 NEEMI – Paani
Se Doodh Ki Kahani (NEEMI - A Tale of Milking Water)
Neemi is the story of a
village, where a people’s movement changed the barren village’s
destiny by reviving traditional methods of water harvesting. Today, the people
of this village are self-reliant. Neemi has been selected as a model village
by UNDP, to be replicated by poor and developing countries that are in dire
need of cost effective methods for growth and sustainability. The film focuses
on the efforts of Magsaysay Award winner Rajender Singh. Dui Paatan ke Beech
Mein (Between The Devil and The Deep River) Shot extensively in North
Bihar, this film looks at the development models chosen and implemented, often
by force, that have destroyed the livelihood of millions of people. Over the
years, with each consequent flood, people developed their own coping mechanisms,
which soon became integral to their culture. Man-made floods and water logging
over vast agriculture land has pauperized the people of Bihar. All this has
been done to “protect people from floods”! Hunting Down Water
Jalam: Jeevante Amruthu
(Water – The Elixir of Life) Samatenay Sahajnay
ka Vigyan (Tanka and Kuin) The film makes a serious
effort to understand the traditional, popular and successful water conservation
methods. The film was shot in the semi desert area of Rajasthan, which registered
an average annual rainfall of 60 to 100mm, but had centuries old traditional
methods of water conservation. These are known by the name of Taanka and Kuin.
In this film we will examine these water collection methods. How they were made
and what are the socio-economic and cultural aspects of these methods. “Vedanthangal
- Winter Heaven for Birds” Vedanthangal bird sanctuary
is the oldest in the country and is one of the largest in the world. Vedanthangal
has been home and winter haven for thousands of birds that migrate annually
during the winter season to this sanctuary. Though the place attracts a huge
number of birds belonging to different species, they neither quarrel nor disturb
one another. It is remarkable that they live in “peace”. Moreover,
this place is beautiful and a pleasure to watch. Hence, a request is made to
visitors to leave the sanctuary as it is and let it be a popular place all the
times, thereby conserving the (existing) Natural Resources. The
Ridley’s Last Stand The film tells the story
of the coral reefs of the Lakshadweep islands. It explains how this vital ecosystem
came into being and traces the growth and diversity of the reef and the factors
that contribute to its health and well-being. The film also shows how close
this ancient ecosystem came to being totally destroyed in 1998 and the reasons
for this devastation. The film ends with the current state of the reef, how
it is regenerating, its importance to the world and the paramount need to protect
it. The main thrust of the film is to show how all of nature is inter-connected
and inter-dependent. Man is a vital part of the natural world and any destruction
of the environment or any other living species will have serious consequences
for all of us, perhaps threatening our very existence. The film enjoins all
people to live in a manner that will help to conserve and safeguard the world’s
natural resources for the future of mankind Jardhar
Diary
Chandi
Ka Samander
Documentary feature “Chandi
Ka Samandar” is the story of a lake, which faces the threat of extinction
due to environmental degradation, spread over 200 sq. miles. Sambhar Lake is
situated 80 Km. from Jaipur. About two decades ago this lake was the only salt
producing unit in the region. Unfortunately, with the coming up of about a hundred
private salt manufacturers and ecological disbalance, we are very close to losing
this internationally known fresh water lake, one of the biggest lakes of Asia.
The
Tidal Life of Krishna The film, ‘The Tidal
Life of Krishna’ endeavors to bring out the importance of conserving the
highly endangered and threatened mangrove forest eco-system. This film also
highlights how the mangroves form nurseries and breeding ground for large number
of fish and prawn species. The film brings out the role played by mangroves
forests in sheltering the villages and human settlements along the coasts from
the fury of nature like Cyclones, Tornadoes. It appeals to the people to join
hands in protecting and preserving this highly fragile Eco-system which if destroyed
can never be brought back. Freedom
FREEDOM…! Is a documentary
film about the protection and conservation of natural resources, about communities
resisting an onslaught on their livelihoods, about democracy, profit and the
sound of the rain. In a journey that traverses Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh , Orissa
, Gujarat and other states in India, the film Freedom documents and presents
insights into many different attempts of local people in their struggle to protect
and control natural resources. Miles
to Go
Enquiries: elephantcorridor@hotmail.com Summary: The film travels
to the villages of these women in district Medak, Andhra Pradesh, in an effort
to understand how the change happened. The main aim for the women was to control
their own lives, with the help of a local NGO called Deccan Development Society.
Their Alternative Public Distribution System is truly commendable. It is a system
that ensures subsidised food grains at village level grain banks for the people.
This system is completely de- decentralized and managed entirely by women. The
film is a personal narrative of the filmmaker. Woods
Were Lovely Dark and Deep An indigenous Indian tribe,
Kani’s from Agsthayar Hills in the southern state of Kerala, has been
awarded the Intellectual Property Rights to the active ingredients of a plant,
long known to it as helping to combat stress, in a move that the government
hopes will end the ‘piracy’ of tribal knowledge by both Indian and
foreign drug companies. While tracing the history of the case itself and trying
to understand the issue of access to traditional knowledge and benefit sharing,
the film probes an equally larger issue of biodiversity conservation, IPR regimes,
and patents debates. Bugyal
(Pastures) Conservation of nature
has been a major aspect of Indian culture, and it has been practiced in Uttaranchal
since ancient times. The lush green pastures of Uttaranchal, similar to those
in the Alps, are known as Bugyal. Local communities have been equipped with
traditional knowledge about the importance and fragility of the ecosystem for
thousands of years. That is why they developed traditions to conserve them.
Even today, one can see preserved areas in the form of sacred groves. This film
reflects upon the traditional customs and beliefs concerned with the conservation
of the bugyal
This is a documentary film
about Man and Mangrove of Sunderbans. The Sunderban is the world’s largest
delta area, where the Ganga & Brahmaputra rivers meet at the Bay of Bengal.
In fact, 65% of the total Mangrove forest of India are located in the district
of North and South 24 Parganas, which are spread over the 9360 sqr. Kilometers. Doodhatoli
Kaippuneeru
(The Bitter Drink) For the past one year, Plachimada
village, located in Palakkad, of Kerala, has been in the thick of controversy.
People from about 1,000 households, including several women belonging to Eravalar
and Malasar tribal communities, have been holding demonstrations and staging
sit-ins in front of the Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages factory complex. The film
chronicles the struggle of the most marginalised section of the Indian Society,
the tribal community; it also discusses the issue of the ownership of natural
resources, mainly water. NEEM:
The Green Gold Mine The film educates the viewers
on the importance of Neem (Azadirachta Indica), an evergreen, large, robust
tree, found to grow anywhere in the Indian sub-continent. Neem is always been
synonymous with ‘Bitterness’, which is due to a wide array of chemicals
found in every part of this tree. The most important compounds found in Neem
are – oil and limonoids. The
Beauty of Dragons This is the story of one
life form that not only managed to survive for more than 300 million years,
but is found even in the farthest corners of the planet today. This is the story
of Dragonflies. The film introduces the viewers with the striking beauty of
dragons, their role in the web of life and, why and how have they managed to
be around for so long. The film aims to stimulate regard for all the smaller
forms of life that exist around us yet, somehow, we fail to register their beauty
and role in the minds of human beings. The
Lifeline of Pocharam
A
Brush With Death The common mongoose is
a fairly widespread species and placed fairly low in the hierarchy of protected
animals in India and is listed under schedule IV of the Wildlife Protection
Act. It has always been considered a friend of the farmer. Though occasionally
known to prey on poultry, it offsets such damage by hunting the farmer’s
enemies — rats, mice and snakes. The mongoose is not a creature of forests.
It is found in the open lands, scrub forests and cultivated lands. It lives
in the thickets, groves of trees and fields or in burrows in the ground. This
film also documents illegal procurement and sale of mongoose hair on which thrives
the paint brush-making industry. As a result of which the mongoose is brutally
killed and is on the brink of being declared extinct. Yet it is placed fairly
low in the hierarchy of protected animals in India being listed in the Schedule
IV of the Wild Life Protection Act Birds
Through My Window The month of May- the time
just before the monsoons break in, is the month of nesting and a month in which
all the birds suddenly came to life, for me. Making this film during my summer
vacations opened my eyes to a whole new world of feathery creatures and I realized
that just by being a little more observant and attentive to our surroundings,
we can have so much company and fun. It was a thrilling experience to find that
ours was not the only home in this compound. The film documents this experience
of finding such homes, which were near my house, many of which I could see right
through my window. My brother and I, we built many birds’ trays and installed
them all around our house. We put food on it every day and observed each and
every bird that came and sat on it. We found many nests, and we also found out
how difficult life is in the wild, how every thing is inter related- the birds,
the animals and the seasons. There is a delicate web of life and we human beings
should not disturb it. Behind
the Glitter (English) /45min/2004
That was ten years ago, until the precious stone Alexandrite was unearthed in the Karaka hill. Today these villages are on the road to modernisation with many facilities including cell phones reaching them. But along with modernity, and improved monetary situations, the villages are reeling under the malaise of AIDS. At the bottom of it is control – control on the land and the illegal mining activity of Alexandrite that nobody buys in India but has great demand in American and European markets. ‘Behind the Glitter’ tells the story of how in a bid to gain control on the access to the mining areas, the mining syndicates have played havoc with the lives of innocent villagers. • Brief bio-data
of the director: PG Diploma in TV Documentary, University of Salford,
UK. Made short features and documentaries on subjects concerning
rural development, anti-tobacco ads etc. Buddha Weeps in Jadugoda /1999/ English ( subtitles )/54min Director: Shriprakash The film is about the deadly impact of uranium mining, y the Uranium Corporation of India Ltd (UCIL), on the tribal people living near Jadugoda, in the east Singhbhum district of Jharkhand. It is an attempt to document the gross misuse of power by the authorities, in displacing the original inhabitants of the region, their lack of concern for internationally accepted norms and safety precautions in the handling of uranium and its by-products, and their complete disregard for its disastrous effect on the people and the region. Enquiries:
Devta Activists, Sanjay Barnela, 30min, An exploration of the role of traditional deities (devtas) belonging to the Kullu valley in conservation and fight for access to forest resources. How local traditions negotiate with contemporary discourse of scientific conservation and national development Enquiries THE PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING TRUST
Healers For All Reasons, Vijay S. Jodha, 30 min T he film dwells on how the likes of Rehmat “Gopal Bapa” Khan, who rely on traditional and eco-friendly methods to heal animals, humans and even plants, are an embodiment of Gandhian philosophy with respect for biodiversity and communal harmony at the grassroots in rural Gujarat. Enquiries THE PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING TRUST
A film on the Todas, an indigenous pastoral community living in the Nilgiris and their encounters with modern Society. Enquiries THE PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING TRUST
The Fine Balance, Darshan Dave, 30min A portrayal of the collective efforts by forest officers and voluntary organizations to attain a delicate eco-balance between the lion (the last surviving gene pool of Asiatic lion) and the Maldharies and Siddies. Enquiries THE PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING TRUST Elephant - God Or Destroyer , Krishnendu Bose, 30 min
Enquiries THE PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING TRUST A Second Hand Life, Nutan Manmohan, 30 min An investigation into the murky side of information technology, whereby tons of hazardous e-waste is seeping into India causing havoc on their health and environment through the experiences of two children. Enquiries THE PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING TRUST
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Narsipatnam
was a non-descript small rural town in Vizag District of Andhra
Pradesh. The villages of Karaka, Kasimi, Donepalem and K.Yellavaram
were remote interior villages with predominantly tribal population.
They had not much connection with the outside world except for visiting
the weekly shanty in Narsipatnam to sell their produce or to purchase
household goods. Even for that they had to walk 12 kilometres all
the way to Narsipatnam – there was no transport facility.
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