London Himalayan
Short
Film Festival
2024
The inaugural London Himalayan Film Festival 2024 organised by The Critical Himalayan Collective in collaboration with Brunel South Asia Studies Research Group took place on 6 April 2024 at Brunel University London.
The festival aimed to centre the Himalayan region of Asia, which is often marginalised within wider academic and public discourse in South Asia including visual representation, to wider publics through the works of some of the most talented visual artists and filmmakers, who we believe are shaping the public opinion and narratives of the region.
The overarching theme of this inaugural film festival was ‘Mangkolen’ or ‘Tomorrow’ in the indigenous Bantawa language from the Himalayan region, which encapsulates the concept of intertwining past, present, and futures. Using this notion, the festival featured a curated selection of films from the Himalayan region that explore wider issues including – identity, indigeneity, diaspora, ecology and environment.
For the festival, we also intentionally adopted a transnational lens to facilitate conversations across the borders and featured short films from Nepal, Sikkim, Darjeeling, Meghalaya, and Assam (Northeast India), Ladakh (India) and the Tibetan Diaspora. Through captivating films, insightful discussions, and cultural exchanges, we sought to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation for the Himalayas, its people and their narratives.
The festival was sponsored by Brunel University London Public Engagement Fund via the UK Research and Innovation - Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF). This festival also partnered with Brunel Nepali Student Society as the official promotional partner.
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SCREENING 1: ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
The first theme for our film festival screening is ‘Ecology and Environment’, which includes three poignant films that explore issues of climate change, (un)sustainable development and indigenous relationship to nature and environment in the Eastern Himalaya through visually stunning and emotionally resonant narratives. While each of these documentary-style films individually focus on specific environmental issues in the local contexts of Nepal, Sikkim, and Darjeeling; together they shed light upon the serious impacts of global climate crisis on the ecologically fragile Himalayan region.
These films include:
Voices of Teesta (DIR: Minket Lepcha, @minket_lepcha )
Dhye Dreams (DIR: Shanta Nepali, @shantanepali )
Sherpas Amidst the Mist (DIR: Ayushi Nirola, @ayushi_nirola )
SCREENING 2: HOME AND IDENTITY
The second theme for our film festival screening is ‘Home and Identity’, including three emotionally stirring and aesthetically pleasing films, each exploring deeper notions of home, belonging, displacement, nostalgia, migration, and identity in the contexts of indigenous communities in Assam (Northeast India), Nepali diaspora in the West, and Tibetan diaspora in exile. Together, these films highlight the diversity of Himalayan ethnic communities and their experiences of mobility in the contemporary world.
These films include:
Ne Sotal / My Courtyard (DIR: Shrutiman Doeri )
Drifting Clouds (DIR: Deepa Shrestha )
Jalyong (DIR: Tenzin Tsewang )
SCREENING 3: ART AND FOLKLORE
The third theme for our film festival screening is ‘Art and Folklore’, which is divided into two parts. Part A focuses on ‘Art’ and includes three evocative films that unpack the material and symbolic significance of traditional and contemporary artistic practices on cultural identities from the perspective of marginalised indigenous, Dalit and diasporic Himalayan communities. These include the traditional art of black pottery practiced in the Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya (Northeast India), the musical practice of the Gandharba community in Nepal, and intersections of spoken word and painting in centring the voices of the Tibetan community in exile. Together, these films unravel the importance of art as a form of resilience.
Part B of this theme focuses specifically on ‘Folklore’. This screening showcases three captivating and visually stunning films ranging in genres from experimental mixed media and animation to fiction and documentary that re-purpose Himalayan folktales and mythologies from Darjeeling, Ladakh and Western Nepal through the medium of contemporary visual arts. Together, these films push the boundaries of conventional storytelling in the Himalayan context through innovative techniques and avant-garde style that will surely captivate the audiences with fresh and immersive experiences.
These films include:
Khiew Ranei (DIR: Riah Taipodia)
On Tibet and Art (DIR: Sonam Norbu Namsel and Tsering Wangmo)
Sarangi (DIR: Bhokraj Gurung).
Dante Katha (DIR: Dishant Pradhan and The Lab Collective)
Taar (DIR: Tsering Lhanzes)
Jhakri Mela (DIR: Bishnu Bura Magar)
Keynote: Asmita Shirish
The keynote filmmaker for our film festival was Asmita Shrish.
Asmita Shrish is a London and Kathmandu-based independent filmmaker whose work spans documentaries, moving images, and community engagement, focusing on themes of identity and home. Collaborating closely with her subjects, she explores intimate spaces within complex narratives. She works in the sector of safeguarding the vulnerable and believes in empathetic storytelling. Mentored by renowned auteurs including Naomi Kawase, Bela Tarr, and Shirin Neshat, Asmita’s films like “Auntie Ganga,” “Gyalmu’s House,” “Chandra,” and “Shepherds of Naar” have garnered numerous awards and screened at over 100 international film festivals, including Locarno, São Paulo, and Busan.
Asmita is an alumni of Berlinale Talents (2020), BFI Network/BAFTA crew (2019/2020), Berwick LUX project bootcamp (2019), Asian Film Academy alumni (2014) and is fellow of IDFA Academy (2011). She is also endorsed by the British Council and a recent beneficiary of the Sinchi Fund 2019/2020 to devise a workshop among indigenous filmmakers in Nepal. Asmita is a recent alumni of Global Media Makers of LA Residency Film Independent (2022).
The festival special keynote screening included Shirsh’s short, ‘Auntie Ganga’, which explores the lives of Gurkha women of the Nepali diaspora set in the British town of Aldershot.
