Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Dawa’s “Ritual Journeys” bags jury’s Commendation at RAI International Festival of Ethnographic Films

GANGTOK, 04 Aug: Filmmaker Dawa Lepcha is back from the 12th Royal Anthropological Institute International Festival of Ethnographic Film held in London from 23-26 June 2011. Featured in the Intangible Culture category, Dawa’s 75-minute documentary film, “Ritual Journeys”, was screened at the festival on 25 June. This poignant portrayal of the life and tasks of Meryak Lepcha, an 80-year-old Padim [Bongthing] of Dzongu, was put together from footage shot by Dawa over seven years of interactions with the Padim and the sensitivity with which the material has been put together is borne out by the Commendation Certificate awarded by the panel of festival judges to “Ritual Journeys”.

The prestigious festival of ethnographic films featured a total of 90 films, including 11 from India alone, and the intangible culture section had 12 entries. Dawa’s “Ritual Journeys” was in the final four shortlisted for the “Intangible Culture Film Prize”, losing out narrowly to the winner, “Unity Through Culture”, a film from Denmark.
“It was a very interesting experience,” shares Dawa of his experience, adding that the opportunity to meet so many people from the line he has chosen for himself was invigorating and inspiring.
While he was in England, Dawa also attended a 10-day film editing course, specialising in ethnographic films, at the University of Manchester from 10 to 22 June.
“Ritual Journeys” had premiered to a packed audience in Gangtok at the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology on 07 May. Filmed by Dawa, who, readers may recall, is a respected activist and a passionate archivist of Lepcha culture and way of life, “Ritual Journeys” had Anna Balicki Denjongpa as anthropologist consultant.
The film is an intimate portrait of Meyrak whom Dawa followed with his camera, recording his daily life and rituals over seven years from 2003 to the year 2007. Interviews, conversations and rituals shot over this extensive schedule have been condensed into the 75-minute film by Dawa and Anna and offers an insight into a way of life which is fading away, even as it allows a peek into what defines the Lepcha way of life in general.

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