Environment film festival begins today

Times of India, Monday, November 21, 2005

New Delhi: From Mumbai's trapped leopards and the langur police deployed against monkeys, to the disappearance of vultures from India from the role of "Devta Activists" or deities in conserving natural resources to the submergence of old Tehri and the impact of water privatization in India.

Film on all this and more will be on view in the Capital when Vatavaran India's only environment and wildlife film festival opens its doors here on Monday. Over four days 47 nominated short films, public messages and student films selected from 244 entries, will compete for awards as Vatavaran celebrates the 20th anniversary of Kerala's Silent Valley having been declared a national park - perhaps modern India's biggest victory in the conservation fight so far-with a theme of Forests of Life. The festival organized by the Centre for Media Studies is supported by Union environment ministry and the UN environment Programme. Noted filmmaker Shyam Benegal heads the jury this year.

Vatavaran which has picked up popularity in its three years life promises the films will shock you make you think and introspect as they detail India's mindless destruction of its environment. From snakes being killed by vehicles on roads to the unending tragedy og the Bhopal gas victims-and the positives of individual efforts to battle the tide. New features of Vatavaran 2005 are a panorama of Asian films and retrospectives of two filmmakers from the UK, Daug Allan and Richard Brock. Nine short Asian films will deal with the destruction of forests pesticide poisoning in northern Thailand climate change in Nepal and one area's long wait for help. Two of the films are from Pakistan. Allan, the principal cameraman for the award-winning BBC series Blue Planet will hold a workshop on underwater filming Jim Detjen director of the Knight center for Environmental Journalism, and Dave Poulson from USA's Michigan University will hold a workshop on e-journalism.