‘The isolation faced by people in the hills is real’
At some point in life, most city-dwellers have thought of moving to the mountains in search for an exotic life away from the routine of a 'nine-to-five' day. Most of us have assumed life in the mountains is carefree and simple. Unfortunately, the grass is not really greener on the other side. Savyasachi Anju-Prabir, a young filmmaker currently pursuing a master's degree in visual anthropology at the University of Münster in Germany, shatters the myths about hill life in his first documentary, Kahan Ka Raasta (At the crossroads). He speaks to Amrita Singh about the harshness and isolation of life in the mountains and the hurdles people living there face. Edited excerpts:
Why did you take up filmmaking?
There’s no simple answer to this question. As a 14year-old, I began watching a film a day. I ended up viewing a lot of European, East Asian and South Asian cinema. Having seen those films, I gave up watching Bollywood and Hollywood movies, though I manage to catch a film or two once in a while. But I guess my gateway into filmmaking was photography, which I continue to be interested in. So, I decided not to waste my time doing a regular bachelor’s degree and get into filmmaking only at the master’s level. I just wanted to jump into films as soon as possible.
Was it love for anthropology, filmmaking or both that inspired you to make a film about the revered mountain life?
The funny thing is I didn’t really have an interest in anthropology. The film only got its anthropological status post production, when it was selected for screenings at Cut.In Student’s Film Festival of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in Mumbai, and later at the 2018 SVA Film and Media Festival in San Jose, USA, where it went on to win the Best Student Film Award. This festival is hosted by one of the oldest and most prestigious anthropology associations in the world. Recently, a small film festival at the Department of Cultural Studies in Moscow selected Kahan ka Raasta for screening as well. However, in retrospect, the process of making the film was quite anthropological as I had been visiting the village for three years before we actually began filming. I had cultivated relationships with the people there and we used to eat, stay and work together. In fact, we’re still in touch and even wish each other on birthdays.
What made you address the harshness of life in the mountains?
Through multiple visits to Kalap village in Uttarakhand, I had learnt that one of the local politicians standing for elections had promised the village a road that would greatly increase its contact with other villages. I was extremely interested in capturing the construction of this road but as you can imagine, nothing was done about this road. Despite the absence of the road, we continued filming and eventually, my film ended up being about the people and the hurdles they face living their lives in the mountains. I made the conscious decision of not indulging in intensive editing to make the village look beautiful or like an exotic getaway. After all, what is beautiful doesn’t have to be pretty in a pictureperfect sense.
What is the one thing you’ve learnt through this experience of filming a documentary film?
Well, I learnt a lot of things. The first thing I realised was that you have a lot less control over the environment around you and other external factors when you’re filming a documentary. After all, it’s not like I could walk into Kalap village with preconceived notions of what I wanted to get on camera. Those who spoke to me about the awaited road did so on their own. And those who didn’t have other things to say and other issues to raise. People were forthcoming and willing to talk to me despite the presence of cameras. That’s when I learnt the importance and need for decentralisation. At least that way the village would be able to do for itself what the government seems to have forgotten to do due to its isolation. And this isolation is real. When I was filming in Kalap, someone from the village asked me what the ocean felt like? How could I describe it to him? Where would one even begin?
Now that your first film is complete and successful, what’s in the pipeline?
As of now I am still pursuing my master’s programme so I am working on smaller visual projects. Increasingly, my interest in auto ethnography has also piqued, which is a more introspection-oriented exploration. So let’s see what ends up coming out of this.
When I was filming in Kalap, someone from the village asked me what the ocean felt like? How could I describe it to him? Where would one even begin?