On the occasion of World Environment Day, which is observed on 5 June, Kriti Film Club will host the Delhi premiere of two Indian documentaries. This year's theme — #OnlyOneEarth — highlights the need to live sustainably in harmony with nature by bringing transformative changes — through policies and our choices — towards cleaner, greener lifestyles.
Garo Hills Ni A'chik Songrang (Villages of Garo Hills) by Abhishek Udaykumar and Moving Upstream: Ganga by Shridhar Sudhir and Siddharth Agarwal are the two feature-length documentaries that will be screened as part of the event EcoReels at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi on 4 and 5 June.
Garo Hills Ni A'chik Songrang follows the lives of three farmers across different regions of the Garo hills. It explores their unique livelihoods, domestic lives, relationships and aspirations. The film's collection of stories forms a document about the villagers' lives for the time to come. It delves into their world without an intention to make a statement about them. The film begins in the monsoon and ends in the winter during the harvest season.
Moving Upstream: Ganga was filmed over six months on a 3,000 km stretch along the Ganga by Siddharth Agarwal. The documentary explores the idea of walking, people’s responses to a wanderer in this fast-paced era, and an evolving relationship with the natural world.
A statement released by the Kriti Film Club read, “The two films being premiered by the Kriti Film Club on this environment day weekend urge us to connect and live in harmony with the ecosystem around us, to treasure and conserve it, as well as to synergize our life choices, our livelihoods and our spiritual being with what is offered by nature and the earth. We hope that Delhi’s audience will not miss a chance to watch these films and make their eco footprints to start the month of June 2022."
The Kriti Film Club is a documentary curation, screening and distribution initiative of the non-profit organisation Kriti Team. The film club, which has been holding screenings every month since August 2000, is committed to sharing thought-provoking cinema that enables viewers to see, discuss and act on important social, development, environmental and human rights issues.