Uttarakhand, August 28 Lata and Reni (Sony)
Director: Anushka Meenakshi, Iswar Srikumar; Cinematographer: Anushka Meenakshi, Iswar Srikumar
Duration: 00:12:53; Aspect Ratio: 1.778:1; Hue: 16.328; Saturation: 0.047; Lightness: 0.405; Volume: 0.097; Cuts per Minute: 4.264
Summary: When
we were heading out to the Valley of Flowers, a friend, Nitin told us about the
village of Reni, not far off, where the Chipko movement started. He also
mentioned that we may get to meet people who would know songs from that time,
which is what got us really excited about going there.
We
stayed in Lata, a village that was, for us, a two hour trek up a windy footpath
path from the main road, in the home of Ranaji.
In
the first ten minutes of meeting Ranaji, I kept thinking that he reminded me of
somebody, and then it hit me- Fidel Castro, but with a beedi! And ten minutes
later, Iswar said, if I ever need to cast anyone in a film as Chattrapati
Shivaji, this would be the guy.
So
here he was, a small-built but fierce looking maverick of a guy who was
initially wary and reserved but over the next few days totally warmed up to us
and even burst out into songs from various protest movements – including the
Chipko when he was just sixteen – that he had been part of.
Lata
is a village of hardly hundred families at the border of the Nanda Devi reserve
and it is here and in the neighbouring village of Reni that the Chipko movement
began, and created an environment for political activism in these villages,
which had also greatly influenced Ranaji. When the Nanda Devi sanctuary was
closed to outsiders, Ranaji was one of the people who led the protest against
this decision, saying that this would greatly damage the livelihood of people in
surrounding villages who depended on the forests on a daily basis. Since Lata
is on the edge of the Nanda Devi reserve, many of the men in the village have
at various times served as porters on expeditions to the Nanda Devi peak,
including Ranaji, who went on the 1976 expedition. With this experience, he
also presents very convincing arguments to prove that these expeditions do more
damage to the ecosystem then the presence of the villagers. We spent much of
the four days in Lata with Ranaji, reading his writings, talking to him about
it, showing him our video, watching videos about Nanda Devi, walking around
with him and listening to rare snatches of song from him.
BALI DEVI
On
our second day at Lata, Ranaji took us to Reni, a 4 km walk away, to meet some
of the women who were part of the Chipko movement. This is Bali Devi, who we
spoke to at length and even sang one of the movements’ songs for us.
As
we walked the path to the village of Reni, we saw the trees above it, all of
which were part of the original forest that was saved by the women of Reni.
We’d stop every now and then for Ranaji to point and tell us some of the
history of the place. This movement that began in 1974 an is said to have
inspired many more events of a similar nature all around the world. Bali Devi
is one of the few women who is still around since the time of the Chipko
movement. Over the years many interviews have happened and even more
photographs been taken. The village of Reni which in a way gave birth to a type
of ecological protest, now has a dam right under it.
Bali Devi spoke to us a little bit about the movement and also sang us a few
songs, some of protest and some of nature and the way people connect to it.
Ranaji singing
Uttarakhand/August 28 Lata and Reni/Sony/August 27 - 30 Reni & back/PRIVATE/AVCHD/BDMV/STREAM/00000.MTS
Reni, Uttarakhand
Ranaji singing
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Ranaji singing
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This song is composed by Balli Singh Cheema in the 1970's, during the anti state Peoples Movements.
"This song was written during a student uprising in Punjab in the 1970s, when some of my fellow students were gunned down by the police, and everybody was out in the streets to oppose this barbarity. This song was written at a time when the people were challenging the oppressive rulers," he said. - from
The Peoples Poet
Ranaji singing
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Ranaji singing 5 Pounding salt
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Pounding salt
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Pounding salt
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Pounding salt
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ranaji looking at camera
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Pounding salt
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Pounding salt
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Ranaji playing with calf, concrete work in the BG
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Ranaji playing with calf, concrete work in the BG
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