Whispers of Fire & Water
An audio installation artist visits the largest coal-mining region of Eastern India, plagued by depleting natural resources and a burning fire in its belly. However, he succumbs to the highly complex socio-political system and moves to a tribal village in a forest area, where water becomes the labyrinth for a personal quest for self.
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Whispers of Fire & Water, Lubdhak Chatterjee's directorial debut, is about a journey plagued by depleting natural resources and delineated by two elements – fire and water.
Shiva, an audio installation artist from Kolkata, visits the largest coal mine region of Eastern India for his work. He is not only overwhelmed by the sights of fire that have been haunting the area for a hundred years, but also by a colossal scale and rhythm of sounds. Faced with the highly complex socio-political system – unavoidable like the omnipresent smoke and fire in the area, he struggles to find leads in his work, his woes getting aggravated as his own life gets intertwined with that in the mines. Finally, he succumbs to the monstrous pressure – inflicted upon him by his inability to negotiate the twists and turns of life. Fire, as an element, engulfs him.
Shiva eventually moves to a tribal village in a dense forest, along with Deepak, a worker in the coal mine who hails from the village. Deepak becomes his vehicle through whom he gets acquainted with the philosophy of life in a forest, far away from the facade of urban life. The panoply of sounds which he experiences in dense forests triggers an inward personal journey which questions his urban gaze, values and fundamental notion of self, carefully constructed over years. Water, as an element, forms the labyrinth of his quest for truth.
Independent, Environmental, Experimental, Indian
