Documentary on tribals enters film festivals

bangalore: nanga jenu, nanga karadi, nanga ajja (the bee, the bear and the kuruba), a one-hour documentary film by vinod raja on the adivasis of nagarhole and kakanakote will be screened in the 32nd international film festival of india 2001 to be held in bangalore from october 10-20. rajappa lived in the sujjulu forests deep inside the jungle now designated as the rajiv gandhi national park.fifteen years ago, he and his family were driven away by the forest authorities and settled in thattekere, close to the coffee plantations where he now works as a coolie. chomamma and her husband chandiah used to live in masalebetta about two decades ago. forest policies forced them out from the forests to the fringes to live in byrankuppe, a trade outpost on the backwaters of the kabini dam. her family has disintegrated with all her three children seeking work as labourers in the coffee plantations of coorg. the kurubas are the original inhabitants of the forests of nagarhole and kakanakote in the western ghats. their forcible eviction started in the early 70s. they were driven out of their ancestral lands deep inside the forest and forced to live on the roadside or plantations on the periphery. today they have nowhere to go. the film is an attempt to look the adivasi view of the forests as their inseparable home, their world and their sacred space. weaving a story of contradictions and the clash of two diverse points of view, the film reveals the struggles of these people. this film will be screened at the united nations association film festival on october 28 and planet in focus--the international environmental film and video festival at toronto. it will also be shown at the pennsylvania film festival in september. the filming team comprising of director and cinematographer vinod raja, executive producer ashok maridas, script by madhu bhushan, worked for more than two years to complete the film. grass roots media pvt ltd produced the film for action for food production and pipal tree. 16mm prints and video copies are available.