Film festival on Environment, Climate Change and Sustainable Development
Curated and Organised by Kriti Film Club
SUNDAY, 2nd June 2024
All films will be followed by a discussion with filmmakers | experts
10:30 am – 11:15 pm | Theme - Urban Environment: Challenges & Choices
FUSED CITY (8 mins/ Assamese with English subtitles/ 2023 /Docu, Stop motion animation)
Dir. Biswajit Das | Prod. Charles Correa Foundation
In the city of Guwahati, a visual artist embarks on a unique journey, weaving together the discarded remnants of electronic waste with various inspirations from the city. As the artist navigates the bustling streets of Guwahati, the film explores the symbiotic relationship between urbanism, waste, and artistic innovation, offering a poignant reflection on the potential for beauty in the overlooked and the forgotten. Watch Trailer
LET THERE BE DARKNESS (18 mins/ English, Bangla with English subtitles/ 2023/ Docu)
Dir. Dyutiman Bhattacharya
With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities, three out of every four people in cities have never experienced the wonderment of pristinely dark skies. Studies all over the world have shown that long-term exposure to bright artificial lights can affect our body’s clock. Also, the film dwells on the aesthetic aspects of darkness Vis a Vis light. Told in a poetic manner, this film may make you sit up and ponder on an oft relegated subject. Watch Trailer
SAMAYADA HARIVU | FLOW OF TIME (8 mins/ Kannada, English w. English subtitles/ 2023/ Docu)
Dir. Shruti Parthasarathy & Vikash Tiwari | Prod. Charles Correa Foundation
This film delves into the lived experiences of Noor Mary and Prasad, inhabitants residing on opposite sides of the Historic Begur Lake in Bengaluru. For one, the lake is a way to practise sustainable agriculture…for the other, it is a means of recreation and a chance to stay connected with nature. The film observes the complexities surrounding the concept of reclamation and its relevance today. Watch Trailer
11:15 am – 12:15 pm | Theme - Climate Crisis and the People
KOHORA RIVER (19:42 mins/ Assamese with English subtitles/ 2022/ Docu)
Dir. Epil Rani Kongari, Aaranyak
The river is the prime source for the Karbis in Assam. They believe that nature is God and all rivers, streams, and living, and non-living ones have souls protected by deities. Over the years, the river has supported the Karbis in many ways, but now…uncertain rainfalls, lesser annual floods, and decreasing groundwater indicate that the river is in great danger. Watch Trailer
#rivers #indigenoustribe #climatechange
MAGICAL FOREST | जादुई जंगल (34 mins/ Nimadi, Hindi with English subtitles/ 2019/ Docu)
Dir. Archana Chandrashekar | Prod. Pinky Brahma Choudhury, Shobhit Jain
Filmed in and around the dry-deciduous forests of Barjhai Ghat in Central India, this film made in collaboration with children portrays the intimate relationship that they share with the forests while addressing the issue of rampant forest fires that have been threatening its very core. Watch Trailer
#children #forestfires #climatechange
12:15 pm – 1:30 pm | Theme - WomEn Labour
AS FOR US (20 mins/ Hindi, Khortha with English subtitles/ 2024/ Docu)
Dir. Pawanjot Kaur
As India commits to phasing out coal-powered energy, a computer technician, a feminist social worker and a fish farmer from India’s coal-dependent region work towards creating alternative livelihood platforms for the coal community. Watch Trailer
CRAFTING THE FUTURE (8:27 mins/ English/ 2024/ Docu)
Dir. Vivek Sangwan and Srishti Chowdhary | Prod. Sanjay Barnela
The revival of craft, food and agriculture traditions in Nagaland, spearheaded by North East Network, is leading to stronger livelihoods, women's empowerment, and conservation of biodiversity.
WATER MATTERS - Community's Response to water crisis
(6 mins/ Tenyidie (Naga-dialect) with English subtitles/ 2022 /Docu)
Dir. Prod. North East Network, Nagaland
This film captures the challenges caused by water scarcity and presents the community’s response to the water crisis at Phekerkriema village under Kohima district Nagaland.
SUBMERGED | जलमग्न (25 mins/ Nimadi, Hindi with English subtitles/ 2023/ Docu)
Dir. Iqbal Hussain | Prod. Pinky Brahma Choudhury, Shobhit Jain
Kotmir, a village in the Dharaji Panchayat, was under the submergence area of the Omkareswar Dam built in the Narmada River. But many of the people from Kotmir had refused to leave the village due to unsettled compensation packages and they lived a subsistence life as migrant labourers in the cities. The film follows their saga and the struggle to avail the benefits of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) when they were forced to return home during Covid-19 pandemic.
1:30 pm – 2:30 pm | Eat @Café | Relax, Shop, Create @Art Gallery
2:30 pm – 3:15 pm | Theme - We Conserve
HONEY HUNTERS OF MY VILLAGE (14:37 mins/ 2022/ Docu)
Dir. Thangsoi M Khiamniugan
With habitation in India and Myanmar, the Khiamniungan tribe is one of the major tribes among the Nagas. Till the 90s, like many other villages in Nagaland, the Choklangan village was cut off from the rest of the country and sustained itself through agriculture and barter trade with Myanmar. This is a story of the people who have been practising the harvesting of Cliff Honey Bee, as a part of their culture and identities. Watch Trailer
REARING GIANTS (18 mins/ English/ 2020/ Docu)
Dir. Dipen Rangmang, Thejavikho Chase
Seventy percent of the world’s agricultural land is already used for meat production. With the ever increasing consumer demand, can we produce sufficient animal protein in the future? With insects being explored as an important source of protein to substitute red meat, this film explores the role of the Giant Hornet, being reared for consumption in the hills of Nagaland in Northeast India.
Watch Trailer
3:30 pm – 4:00 pm | Theme - Communities Sustain
WATER FOR LIFE (15:27 mins/ Hindi / 2020/ Docu)
Dir. Sara Khongsai
One of the ‘World’s wettest places of India’, Cherrapunji suffers from a water shortage. From population growth, deforestation, and development, to climate change, the people are experiencing unprecedented impacts on the ecosystem here. A project tries to initiate a water harvesting management initiative for community benefit. Watch Trailer
TAPIOCA WINE A TRADITIONAL DRINK OF LEPCHA (8:17 mins/ Nepali w. Eng. subs/ 2022/ Docu)
Dir. Sharat Hazarika
Chi is the traditional alcohol in Gnon Samdong Village in Sikkim. This story is about the locals who are preserving the tradition of making this wine. It is not just wine for them, it's the drink which brings the Lepcha community together. Watch Trailer
4:00 pm - 4:15 pm | Eat @Café | Relax, Shop, Create @Art Gallery
4:15 pm – 5:15 pm | Theme - Indigenous Lives and Habitats
THE LEOPARD'S TRIBE (40 mins/ Marathi, Hindi, English with English subtitles/ 2022/ Docu)
Dir. Miriam Chandy Menacherry (producer attending)
An indigenous family finds they are at the centre of an imaginative battle to preserve the green lungs of India’s commercial capital and the leopard the tribe worships. Watch Trailer
5:15 pm – 6:00 pm | Theme - Communities Sustain
FLOWER OF MOTHER EARTH | जमीन मा का फूल (16 mins/ Nimadi with Eng. subs/ 2022/ Docu)
Dir. Laxminaryan Devda, Pradeep Lekhwar | Prod. Pinky Brahma Choudhury, Shobhit Jain
Natthu kaka waits for the rains with much hope each year, hoping to find the wild mushrooms (Zameen maa ka phool) which spring out when the rains hit the ground. He reminisces the times from his childhood when they were abundant and the taste he would enjoy thoroughly as a boy. With receding forests and erratic rains, it is hard to find these edible mushrooms.
WHITE WATERLILY KERNEL | म्हारी टोपली मा कुमुदिनी (12mins/ Nimadi w. Eng.subs/ 2023/ Docu)
Dir. Laxminarayan Devda, Iqbal Hussain | Prod. Pinky Brahma Choudhury, Shobhit Jain
One has to dive in the water if one wants pearls and Fearless Savitri Bai from Pandu Talao dives in for the same. This film, set in a haunted pond will take you on a water ride in search of these edible nutritious pearls. #foodforaging
MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE (6:35 mins/ English/ Docu)
Dir. Prod. Katie Conlon
Inspiring and impactful efforts to implement the plastic ban, waste segregation and recovery, alternatives come through this film as workable solutions. The Lachen Tourism Development Committee (LTDC) in North Sikkim is managing the ecological footprint of tourism in this rural region. #plasticban #restoration #ecotourism #rural livelihoods #cultural sustainability
6:00 pm – 8:15 pm | Theme – Indigenous Lives and Habitats
WHISPERS OF FIRE AND WATER (83 mins/ Hindi, Bangla, English w. English subs/ 2023/ Fiction)
Dir. Lubdhak Chatterjee
Shiva, an audio installation artist visits the largest coal-mining region of Eastern India, which is plagued by depleting natural resources and a burning fire in its belly. However, he succumbs to the highly complex socio-political system and moves to a tribal village in the forest, where water becomes the labyrinth for a personal confrontation with urban gaze and quest for self. Watch Trailer
Click for Day 1 and Day 3 schedule
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