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PHANTOM INDIA
Reflections on a Journey
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00:01:43,203 --> 00:01:45,364
March 1 1, 6.:00 a.m.
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00:01:45,572 --> 00:01:50,168
A festival at the Kapaleeshwar temple
on the outskirts of Madras.
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00:01:50,376 --> 00:01:53,743
Once a year, this immense chariot
is taken from the temple
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00:01:53,947 --> 00:01:57,849
and solemnly paraded around
the temple walls and reflecting pool.
6
00:01:58,051 --> 00:02:01,748
It takes five hours
to cover the half-mile circuit.
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00:03:33,313 --> 00:03:36,009
These chariots,
found in all the temples in the south,
8
00:03:36,216 --> 00:03:38,013
are made of carved wood.
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00:03:38,218 --> 00:03:42,086
They're extremely heavy
and have neither steering nor brakes.
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00:03:42,522 --> 00:03:46,322
They're also ageless,
unchanged for centuries.
11
00:03:46,526 --> 00:03:49,324
Pieces are replaced
as they wear out.
12
00:03:49,829 --> 00:03:52,423
Priests ride inside the chariot.
13
00:03:52,632 --> 00:03:56,693
At each stop, they bless
offerings hoisted up in baskets,
14
00:03:57,136 --> 00:03:59,604
offerings of coconut and fruit.
15
00:04:10,216 --> 00:04:12,116
There's a large peace-keeping force.
16
00:04:12,318 --> 00:04:16,755
Police, soldiers, and some of the
faithful too, dressed up like Boy Scouts.
17
00:04:17,857 --> 00:04:22,021
From the upper floors of residences,
the parade is doused with water.
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00:04:22,228 --> 00:04:25,527
It's both a ritual
and a welcome refreshment.
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00:04:26,633 --> 00:04:30,763
Hundreds of the faithful pull the chariot,
an exhausting and dangerous task.
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00:04:31,137 --> 00:04:34,629
It takes a lever and several men
to get it rolling.
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00:04:34,841 --> 00:04:37,605
To stop it, they throw
wedges under the wheels.
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00:04:37,810 --> 00:04:40,904
The chariot slides for 20 yards
before stopping,
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00:04:41,114 --> 00:04:43,708
threatening to topple over
at any moment.
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00:07:36,989 --> 00:07:40,425
At first, we're afraid. :
afraid of the screaming crowd,
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00:07:40,626 --> 00:07:44,118
afraid of this colossus
that threatens to demolish a house
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00:07:44,330 --> 00:07:46,798
or crush a crowd of believers.
27
00:07:47,500 --> 00:07:49,934
The hellish, suffocating, humid heat
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00:07:50,136 --> 00:07:52,969
reinforces the sense
of collective trance,
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00:07:53,172 --> 00:07:56,335
where everything can be released,
where rich and poor mingle,
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00:07:56,542 --> 00:07:58,601
where castes no longer exist,
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00:07:58,811 --> 00:08:02,747
all abandoning their individuality
to blend into one mass,
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00:08:02,949 --> 00:08:05,747
a single body without name or face.
33
00:08:06,719 --> 00:08:08,687
We got caught up in the madness.
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00:08:08,888 --> 00:08:12,016
We became part of the crowd,
shooting reel after reel,
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00:08:12,225 --> 00:08:16,127
jostled like them,
drenched like them, joyous like them.
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00:08:16,963 --> 00:08:19,329
For a moment
I forgot who I was.
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00:08:19,532 --> 00:08:21,898
I was part of something else.
I belonged.
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00:08:22,101 --> 00:08:24,661
I gave myself up to it,
heart and soul.
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00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:31,071
Obviously, sitting here in Paris,
these images seem different.
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00:08:31,277 --> 00:08:34,110
They can be seen as illustrating
medieval India, obscurantism,
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00:08:34,313 --> 00:08:36,144
the exploitation of the gullible,
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00:08:36,349 --> 00:08:38,783
fetishism and the opium
of the people.
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00:08:38,985 --> 00:08:43,820
But that morning we followed
our instincts, our senses, our feelings,
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00:08:44,023 --> 00:08:45,991
not our ideas.
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00:11:25,518 --> 00:11:29,284
We left the crowd at noon,
exhausted, completely drained.
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00:11:30,122 --> 00:11:34,650
For five hours we'd experienced life
differently, at a different rhythm.
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00:11:34,860 --> 00:11:38,990
In the tireless repetition of gestures,
in the sea of faces,
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00:11:39,198 --> 00:11:43,032
time had disappeared,
completely ceased to exist.
49
00:12:09,462 --> 00:12:11,191
Sunday, March 3.
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00:12:11,397 --> 00:12:15,390
We saw a comedy in Tamil,
the language of Madras.
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00:12:15,701 --> 00:12:18,795
It was a scathing attack
on the New Delhi government,
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00:12:19,004 --> 00:12:20,528
politicians,
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00:12:20,740 --> 00:12:24,198
and the bureaucracy, criticized
for its corruption and inefficiency.
54
00:12:24,410 --> 00:12:27,140
Bureaucracy is truly
the scourge of this country.
55
00:12:27,346 --> 00:12:29,837
A legacy of the English,
a state within a state,
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00:12:30,049 --> 00:12:33,143
it terrified us at every encounter.
57
00:12:33,352 --> 00:12:35,445
Entire days lost in the shuffle
from office to office,
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00:12:35,654 --> 00:12:37,952
countless underpaid employees,
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00:12:38,157 --> 00:12:42,594
polite smiles, vacant looks, refusal
to take the slightest responsibility,
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00:12:42,795 --> 00:12:47,255
waiting lines filling hallways, piles of
paper everywhere, misplaced documents. :
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00:12:47,466 --> 00:12:49,434
It constantly reminds us of Kafka,
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00:12:49,635 --> 00:12:52,695
and we wonder why the Indians don't
have their own Cultural Revolution
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00:12:52,905 --> 00:12:55,373
and send the bureaucrats
out into the fields.
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00:13:05,584 --> 00:13:07,552
The playwright is named Cho.
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00:13:07,753 --> 00:13:10,278
It's his 13th play,
written in two days.
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00:13:10,489 --> 00:13:14,823
He plays the lead, the Mongolian
emperor Mohammed Bin Tughlaq,
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00:13:15,027 --> 00:13:18,986
renowned for his despotism,
who ruled India three centuries ago.
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00:13:19,465 --> 00:13:22,161
Cho's play tells of Tughlaq
returning to India today,
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00:13:22,368 --> 00:13:25,201
demanding his throne
and being named prime minister.
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00:13:25,404 --> 00:13:27,736
At the end of the play,
we realize he's an impostor
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00:13:27,940 --> 00:13:31,137
out to show Indians
the absurdity of their politics.
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00:13:44,757 --> 00:13:48,625
A few years ago a new political party
was formed here, the DMK.
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00:13:48,828 --> 00:13:53,424
It campaigned for independence
for Madras from the rest of India.
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00:13:53,632 --> 00:13:57,466
In the '67 elections,
the DMKcame into power in Madras.
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00:13:58,070 --> 00:14:00,800
For the moment, they've laid aside
their separatist claims,
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00:14:01,006 --> 00:14:02,871
but the facts are telling. :
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00:14:03,075 --> 00:14:05,737
India, as large as Europe,
is a mosaic of populations
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00:14:05,945 --> 00:14:09,642
with only religion
and the caste system in common.
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00:14:10,349 --> 00:14:12,544
The Indians in the south,
especially the Tamils,
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00:14:12,751 --> 00:14:14,981
are aware of their regional identities.
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00:14:15,187 --> 00:14:17,314
They're convinced
they're the "real" Indians,
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00:14:17,523 --> 00:14:20,151
those who best resisted
foreign influences
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00:14:20,359 --> 00:14:22,623
and preserved the customs, religion,
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00:14:22,828 --> 00:14:24,819
and culture of the past.
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00:14:25,030 --> 00:14:29,091
Descendants of the first inhabitants
of India, they have little Aryan blood.
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00:14:29,301 --> 00:14:33,328
They're very dark-skinned, which draws
the contempt of the northerners.
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00:14:33,706 --> 00:14:38,006
They accuse the northern Indians
of colonialism and exploitation.
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00:14:39,178 --> 00:14:41,476
One of their major problems
is language.
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00:14:41,680 --> 00:14:45,411
The government plans to replace English
as the official administrative language
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00:14:45,618 --> 00:14:49,247
with Hindi,
the main language of the north.
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00:14:49,622 --> 00:14:52,147
The southern Indians absolutely refuse,
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00:14:52,358 --> 00:14:56,818
provoking bloody riots and street fighting
in Madras and elsewhere.
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00:14:57,897 --> 00:15:00,229
The students lead the struggle.
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00:15:00,432 --> 00:15:03,196
One of their leaders,
T. R. Janarthanam,
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00:15:03,402 --> 00:15:07,964
an activist who led
a school strike of several months,
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00:15:08,173 --> 00:15:10,004
explains his viewpoint.
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00:15:17,116 --> 00:15:20,051
"Just 30% of the population
speak Hindi.
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00:15:20,252 --> 00:15:22,982
70% do not.
99
00:15:23,188 --> 00:15:25,782
I can't accept the idea
of a minority language
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00:15:25,991 --> 00:15:29,051
replacing an international language
like English.
101
00:15:29,295 --> 00:15:31,763
We've spoken
English for over 200 years.
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00:15:31,964 --> 00:15:34,694
It's become the Indian
national language.
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00:15:34,900 --> 00:15:39,564
It's unfair to impose
one of the 40 native languages
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00:15:39,772 --> 00:15:42,366
as the official language.
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00:15:42,574 --> 00:15:47,273
We, the Tamils, are against Hindi
and will not accept it in any form.
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00:15:47,479 --> 00:15:49,947
We'd be forced
to learn a third language
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00:15:50,149 --> 00:15:52,413
in addition to English and Tamil,
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00:15:52,618 --> 00:15:56,145
putting us at a disadvantage
to native speakers of Hindi.
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00:15:56,355 --> 00:15:58,550
The central government
should realize this
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00:15:58,757 --> 00:16:01,317
and understand our problem.
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00:16:01,527 --> 00:16:04,155
Otherwise, it will lead
to the disintegration of India. "
112
00:16:15,040 --> 00:16:19,306
The Indian government makes
a colossal effort at population control.
113
00:16:19,511 --> 00:16:23,447
Everywhere one sees billboards
showing a happy Indian family of four-
114
00:16:23,649 --> 00:16:25,344
two parents, two children -
115
00:16:25,551 --> 00:16:28,520
even in the most remote villages.
116
00:16:31,223 --> 00:16:35,159
We visited the family planning exhibit
at the Madras fair.
117
00:16:35,361 --> 00:16:38,159
A mixed crowd files
past pictures and statistics
118
00:16:38,364 --> 00:16:40,423
while being brainwashed
by loudspeakers.
119
00:17:18,337 --> 00:17:20,100
What is this loudspeaker saying?
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00:17:20,305 --> 00:17:24,071
"Did you know that in our country,
a child is born every 1.5 seconds?"
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00:17:24,276 --> 00:17:27,939
55,000 every day,
2 1 million each year.
122
00:17:28,514 --> 00:17:31,347
India represents
only 3% of the world's landmass
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00:17:31,550 --> 00:17:33,916
but contains 1 4%
of the world's population.
124
00:17:34,987 --> 00:17:39,253
In 30 or 40 years,
there will be 1 billion Indians.
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00:17:39,992 --> 00:17:43,291
Until now, population control
hasn't achieved the anticipated results.
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00:17:43,562 --> 00:17:45,530
According to the latest statistics,
127
00:17:45,731 --> 00:17:48,928
the population continues to grow
faster than production.
128
00:17:49,268 --> 00:17:52,260
Yet the campaign
doesn't lack imagination,
129
00:17:52,471 --> 00:17:54,302
offering a free radio
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00:17:54,506 --> 00:17:57,339
to any man who agrees
to be sterilized.
131
00:18:29,074 --> 00:18:31,269
This is a demonstration booth.
132
00:18:31,477 --> 00:18:34,105
A young man explains
how to use an IUD,
133
00:18:34,313 --> 00:18:39,046
using 3-D models of sexual organs
and not sparing the slightest detail.
134
00:18:54,533 --> 00:18:56,501
Now he's speaking to the men.
135
00:18:56,702 --> 00:19:01,230
"If you want to have intercourse
with your wife, don't forget to use this. "
136
00:19:02,374 --> 00:19:04,171
After the demonstration,
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00:19:04,376 --> 00:19:07,777
he distributes Russian-made condoms
by the handful.
138
00:19:08,013 --> 00:19:10,004
The audience scrambles for them,
139
00:19:10,215 --> 00:19:13,514
especially a 10-year-old boy
who lays in a good supply.
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00:19:42,047 --> 00:19:44,106
Whose fault is it
if India is overpopulated?
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00:19:44,316 --> 00:19:46,307
Indians answer. : England.
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00:19:46,518 --> 00:19:49,078
"They exploited our country,
bilked our peasants,
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00:19:49,288 --> 00:19:53,190
raped our economy, and at
the same time brought medicine. "
144
00:19:53,392 --> 00:19:57,351
So they lowered the infant mortality rate
and suppressed epidemics,
145
00:19:57,563 --> 00:20:00,259
which means they disrupted
the demographic balance
146
00:20:00,465 --> 00:20:02,729
without ever developing
the country's economy
147
00:20:02,935 --> 00:20:06,268
to allow it support
this excess population.
148
00:20:46,645 --> 00:20:49,739
Movies are a real industry in Madras.
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00:20:49,948 --> 00:20:52,746
In this city alone,
there are 15 major movie studios,
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00:20:52,951 --> 00:20:54,942
producing over 200 films every year. :
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00:20:55,153 --> 00:20:57,713
musicals of three or four hours,
152
00:20:57,923 --> 00:21:01,450
historical epics,
detective films set to music,
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00:21:01,660 --> 00:21:03,685
anything that draws an audience.
154
00:21:07,933 --> 00:21:11,369
Comparing these billboards
to the people in the streets,
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00:21:11,570 --> 00:21:13,629
we always wonder. :
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00:21:13,839 --> 00:21:16,808
In a country with such beautiful,
delicate people,
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00:21:17,009 --> 00:21:21,571
why are most of the movie stars
short, fat and thick-featured?
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00:21:22,314 --> 00:21:26,876
They wear heavy white and pink makeup,
making them even uglier.
159
00:21:27,085 --> 00:21:29,553
Once again, it's the racist prejudice
about skin color. :
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00:21:29,755 --> 00:21:32,121
To be beautiful,
you must be white.
161
00:21:58,884 --> 00:22:02,012
A movie studio in Madras
resembles one in Paris or Rome,
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00:22:02,220 --> 00:22:04,916
except for the garland of flowers
on the camera.
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00:22:05,123 --> 00:22:09,082
No one's in a hurry.
Here, a film can take a year to shoot.
164
00:22:10,128 --> 00:22:12,926
This is a blockbuster,
a story of thwarted love
165
00:22:13,131 --> 00:22:16,931
between a handsome musician
and a well-bred and chaperoned girl.
166
00:22:17,135 --> 00:22:19,501
This is the scene
of love at first sight.
167
00:23:17,295 --> 00:23:21,197
The film stars Sivaji Ganesan,
the Tamil Belmondo,
168
00:23:21,400 --> 00:23:23,800
a superstar in southern India.
169
00:23:24,002 --> 00:23:26,596
His career began on the stage
at the age of five.
170
00:23:26,805 --> 00:23:30,969
He shoots several films simultaneously
and earns astronomical fees.
171
00:24:05,210 --> 00:24:09,374
Indian intellectuals highly disapprove
of the cinema of Madras and Bombay.
172
00:24:09,648 --> 00:24:12,742
They condemn its poor taste,
stupidity and excess,
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00:24:12,951 --> 00:24:16,478
calling it a synthesis of the worst
of Indian and western vulgarity.
174
00:24:16,988 --> 00:24:18,888
But terrible as these films may be,
175
00:24:19,090 --> 00:24:22,355
they're the means of expression
and sole entertainment for the people
176
00:24:22,561 --> 00:24:25,758
in a country in which TV
is practically nonexistent.
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00:24:25,964 --> 00:24:28,091
I admit I liked some of these films,
178
00:24:28,300 --> 00:24:32,031
with their incoherence, dramatic plot
twists, one-dimensional characters
179
00:24:32,771 --> 00:24:35,433
and constant intervention
of magical forces.
180
00:25:28,727 --> 00:25:30,319
Thursday, March 16.
181
00:25:30,529 --> 00:25:33,464
Like obedient tourists
hungry for Indian culture,
182
00:25:33,665 --> 00:25:36,225
we treat ourselves to a
performance of Bharatanatyam,
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00:25:36,434 --> 00:25:38,925
the classical dance
of southern India.
184
00:25:52,517 --> 00:25:55,111
We're a bit surprised
by the chubbiness of the dancer,
185
00:25:55,453 --> 00:25:59,412
and also by the cabaret-like
presentation.
186
00:25:59,624 --> 00:26:01,592
Though treated like tourists,
187
00:26:01,793 --> 00:26:04,819
we're still moved
by the extreme grace of the gestures
188
00:26:05,163 --> 00:26:07,256
and the beauty of the singing.
189
00:27:26,344 --> 00:27:28,141
Monday, March 1 1.
190
00:27:28,346 --> 00:27:31,645
We're a few miles outside of Madras
at the Kalakshetra School,
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00:27:31,850 --> 00:27:34,819
conservatory for
the traditional dances of the south.
192
00:27:35,487 --> 00:27:37,955
The school day here
begins with prayer.
193
00:27:38,456 --> 00:27:40,651
Teachers and students sing to God.
194
00:27:40,859 --> 00:27:42,850
The religion and rite don't matter.
195
00:27:43,061 --> 00:27:44,619
God has many names,
196
00:27:44,829 --> 00:27:46,490
but there's only one God.
197
00:27:48,566 --> 00:27:52,400
This dance school was an offshoot
of the famous Theosophical Society,
198
00:27:52,604 --> 00:27:55,095
founded more than 50 years ago
by Annie Besant,
199
00:27:55,306 --> 00:27:58,605
a European who dreamt of bringing
India and the West closer.
200
00:27:59,411 --> 00:28:01,402
It's a well-protected world.
201
00:28:01,613 --> 00:28:04,480
It was difficult
to get authorization to film.
202
00:28:04,683 --> 00:28:06,674
The directors of the school
kept hesitating,
203
00:28:06,885 --> 00:28:09,911
questioning us
with slightly scornful suspicion.
204
00:28:10,121 --> 00:28:12,783
Finally, they grudgingly agreed.
205
00:28:28,506 --> 00:28:30,133
There are several courses.
206
00:28:30,341 --> 00:28:34,209
We visited a class in Kathakali,
a dance from Kerala,
207
00:28:34,412 --> 00:28:36,744
which has a different cultural heritage.
208
00:28:38,116 --> 00:28:42,177
Kathakali is more realistic,
closer to mime, and restricted to men.
209
00:28:42,654 --> 00:28:46,613
It's a kind of religious pantomime
with many characters.
210
00:28:52,363 --> 00:28:57,062
The young dancers illustrate for us
how situations and feelings
211
00:28:57,268 --> 00:29:00,396
are expressed in the symbolic language
of Kathakali.
212
00:29:00,872 --> 00:29:03,773
This is a bee gathering pollen
from a lotus.
213
00:29:27,031 --> 00:29:29,022
Climbing a mountain.
214
00:30:00,365 --> 00:30:02,128
Fear.
215
00:30:19,784 --> 00:30:24,016
Classes begin in the early morning,
before the heat becomes overwhelming.
216
00:30:24,756 --> 00:30:26,951
Bharatanatyam is a woman's dance,
217
00:30:27,158 --> 00:30:30,321
more stylized
and purer than Kathakali.
218
00:30:30,528 --> 00:30:32,826
To be skilled at it,
219
00:30:33,031 --> 00:30:36,125
one must train from the earliest age
and possess great patience.
220
00:30:36,334 --> 00:30:39,462
These girls will train
for 10, 15 or 20 years
221
00:30:39,671 --> 00:30:42,299
before giving a public performance.
222
00:30:42,507 --> 00:30:46,170
The movement of the wrist, the nuance
of expression, the position of the foot -
223
00:30:46,377 --> 00:30:48,971
each has a specific meaning.
224
00:30:49,380 --> 00:30:52,577
Bharatanatyam is a code,
an encrypted language
225
00:30:52,784 --> 00:30:56,413
that must be known to the audience
as well as the dancer.
226
00:30:56,621 --> 00:30:58,851
Otherwise they can't follow the story.
227
00:30:59,490 --> 00:31:01,617
Westerners watching the dance
228
00:31:01,826 --> 00:31:05,387
are incapable of understanding,
incapable of participating.
229
00:31:06,598 --> 00:31:10,796
From outside, we judge
its aesthetic qualities as a performance,
230
00:31:11,002 --> 00:31:13,129
when in fact it's a ceremony.
231
00:34:46,818 --> 00:34:48,615
Moving from class to class,
232
00:34:48,820 --> 00:34:53,086
nonbelievers lost in a sacred world,
burdened by our equipment,
233
00:34:53,291 --> 00:34:55,657
we noticed something quite striking. :
234
00:34:55,860 --> 00:34:57,794
No one paid us
the slightest attention.
235
00:34:57,995 --> 00:35:01,931
All were extraordinarily concentrated
on their exercises.
236
00:35:02,233 --> 00:35:04,258
To them, we didn't even exist.
237
00:35:04,469 --> 00:35:06,528
It almost hurt our feelings.
238
00:35:33,764 --> 00:35:38,394
Bharatanatyam is the mother dance
that gave birth to all the others.
239
00:35:38,603 --> 00:35:42,562
It's said to have originated at Tanjore,
great temple of the Chola dynasty.
240
00:35:42,874 --> 00:35:46,970
The dancers belonged to the temple
and danced only for worship.
241
00:35:47,545 --> 00:35:50,412
Even today,
despite its secular appearance,
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00:35:50,615 --> 00:35:54,312
to dance is to relive a tradition,
regain a heritage,
243
00:35:54,652 --> 00:35:58,247
reestablish contact between
the present moment and eternity.
244
00:37:55,239 --> 00:37:58,936
The school gives performances
throughout India and abroad.
245
00:37:59,343 --> 00:38:02,506
The students perform major ballets
with many characters,
246
00:38:02,847 --> 00:38:05,907
but each dancer dreams
of becoming a soloist.
247
00:38:06,117 --> 00:38:08,312
Few will succeed.
248
00:38:08,552 --> 00:38:13,251
Others will pass on the tradition,
becoming teachers at the school.
249
00:38:17,662 --> 00:38:20,688
There is currently
a Bharatanatyam renaissance,
250
00:38:20,898 --> 00:38:22,866
which almost died out 50 years ago.
251
00:38:23,067 --> 00:38:26,730
Perhaps this means
India is sliding towards folklore.
252
00:38:26,937 --> 00:38:29,997
Perhaps this renaissance is
a death knell for the dance,
253
00:38:30,207 --> 00:38:34,507
like everywhere that ancient traditions
are artificially recreated.
254
00:39:20,291 --> 00:39:22,316
If India forgets Bharatanatyam,
255
00:39:22,526 --> 00:39:25,359
there will always be
foreigners to dance it.
256
00:39:25,563 --> 00:39:29,158
These two were admitted
to beginning classes at the school.
257
00:39:30,167 --> 00:39:33,728
Their touching but pathetic efforts
are a bit embarrassing.
258
00:39:33,938 --> 00:39:37,999
The American and the Japanese girl
have learned a little of the technique,
259
00:39:38,342 --> 00:39:40,742
but it's obvious
something is missing.
260
00:39:40,945 --> 00:39:44,312
There is neither truth nor grace
in their dancing.
261
00:39:44,515 --> 00:39:46,210
It's a caricature.
262
00:39:46,417 --> 00:39:48,112
Watch them carefully.
263
00:39:48,319 --> 00:39:50,310
They demonstrate in striking fashion
264
00:39:50,521 --> 00:39:55,652
how impossible it is for foreigners
to fit into Indian culture.
265
00:39:55,860 --> 00:39:59,956
The failure is particularly striking here
in its physicality,
266
00:40:00,164 --> 00:40:02,758
but it's the same in all domains.
267
00:41:16,307 --> 00:41:19,640
The dancer must forget her body,
which is immensely difficult,
268
00:41:19,844 --> 00:41:23,507
because perfection is achieved
only through absolute control of gesture
269
00:41:23,714 --> 00:41:25,739
and memory.
270
00:41:26,050 --> 00:41:28,848
But these dancers
have gone beyond technique.
271
00:41:29,186 --> 00:41:33,680
These images clearly show dance
as language, or better yet, dialogue.
272
00:41:33,891 --> 00:41:36,724
The gestures are a prayer,
an invocation.
273
00:41:36,927 --> 00:41:39,589
The dance is one of the yogas,
274
00:41:39,964 --> 00:41:41,955
meaning a path to transcendence,
275
00:41:42,166 --> 00:41:44,726
a bridge between here
and the beyond.
276
00:44:21,925 --> 00:44:25,361
We filmed tirelessly,
several days in a row,
277
00:44:25,562 --> 00:44:29,658
as if the dancers were elusive images
that would fade away.
278
00:44:30,100 --> 00:44:33,467
There was something uncertain
and unreal in the air
279
00:44:33,671 --> 00:44:35,662
that tore at one's heart.
280
00:44:35,873 --> 00:44:39,900
This grace, this beauty,
this perfect harmony of body and mind
281
00:44:40,110 --> 00:44:42,408
is like the idealized vision of India,
282
00:44:42,613 --> 00:44:46,515
one that I'd so rarely encountered
that I questioned if it really existed.
283
00:44:46,717 --> 00:44:48,184
Mystical India,
284
00:44:48,385 --> 00:44:51,479
India that transcends appearances
to achieve unity.
285
00:44:51,889 --> 00:44:55,552
The southern Indians like to represent
their great god Shiva
286
00:44:55,759 --> 00:44:59,126
in his incarnation as Nataraj,
the cosmic dancer,
287
00:44:59,329 --> 00:45:02,264
he who orders
the movements of the universe.
288
00:45:02,599 --> 00:45:05,534
Dance is the supreme expression
of Hinduism.
289
00:45:32,896 --> 00:45:36,195
This is India. :
a worldview we don't understand,
290
00:45:36,400 --> 00:45:38,300
a social hierarchy that puzzles us,
291
00:45:38,502 --> 00:45:40,868
an economic reality that shocks us,
292
00:45:41,071 --> 00:45:45,508
but also the hesitant, fragile grace
of two girls conversing with God.
293
00:46:42,399 --> 00:46:44,094
We have to practice every day.
294
00:46:44,301 --> 00:46:47,270
From 9.:00 to 1 1.:00 a.m.,
and often in the afternoon.
295
00:46:49,206 --> 00:46:52,903
She's from Hassan,
on the other side of India.
296
00:46:53,110 --> 00:46:56,238
She's light-skinned,
with slightly Asian features.
297
00:46:56,446 --> 00:46:59,142
The other is from Madras,
a purebred Tamil.
298
00:46:59,783 --> 00:47:02,445
I liked their laughs,
their expressions,
299
00:47:02,653 --> 00:47:05,520
how natural they were,
and how serious.
300
00:47:05,722 --> 00:47:08,885
I told them that classical dancers
in Europe also practice every day.
301
00:47:09,092 --> 00:47:12,584
They answer sharply,
"We have to concentrate more.
302
00:47:12,796 --> 00:47:15,094
If we're not completely concentrated
on what we're doing,
303
00:47:15,299 --> 00:47:18,234
we can't express our faith,
our love of God.
304
00:47:18,435 --> 00:47:21,029
We must think and concentrate. "
305
00:48:17,861 --> 00:48:22,628
"The heroine is the main character
in solo Bharatanatyam performances.
306
00:48:22,833 --> 00:48:25,131
She always venerates the hero,
307
00:48:25,335 --> 00:48:29,999
and the hero is always
one of the gods in our religion.
308
00:48:30,207 --> 00:48:33,438
Each god is attached
to a specific temple,
309
00:48:33,644 --> 00:48:35,942
like Tanjore, for example.
310
00:48:36,213 --> 00:48:39,512
The dance we rehearsed yesterday
was dedicated to the god Krishna.
311
00:48:39,716 --> 00:48:42,150
Today's is to the god Shiva.
312
00:48:42,486 --> 00:48:45,512
Songs always address
one god at a time.
313
00:48:46,990 --> 00:48:49,083
We don't seek innovation.
314
00:48:49,293 --> 00:48:51,454
We don't believe in it.
315
00:48:51,662 --> 00:48:53,926
What we do
comes from the distant past,
316
00:48:54,131 --> 00:48:57,032
and we always choose
traditional songs. "
317
00:49:20,257 --> 00:49:23,749
These are the stars of the school,
the best and the brightest,
318
00:49:23,961 --> 00:49:28,762
or they will be when they finish,
for they still have much training ahead.
319
00:49:28,966 --> 00:49:32,732
Now we've begun
to distract them a little.
320
00:49:33,236 --> 00:49:36,364
We're keeping them from attaining
the total concentration needed
321
00:49:36,573 --> 00:49:39,041
to attain perfection.
322
00:49:39,576 --> 00:49:42,807
We keep filming.
We watch them endlessly.
323
00:49:43,313 --> 00:49:47,147
Time has stopped.
We don't want to leave.
324
00:49:47,684 --> 00:49:49,879
We can't tear ourselves away.
325
00:49:50,520 --> 00:49:52,579
Then we're suddenly thrown out,
326
00:49:52,789 --> 00:49:57,055
like slightly suspect characters
come to disturb their perfect order.
327
00:49:57,260 --> 00:49:59,626
They sensed something fishy
about our presence.
328
00:50:00,430 --> 00:50:04,491
When I think back on it now,
I think they were right.
329
00:50:04,701 --> 00:50:06,669
We were indeed thieves,
330
00:50:06,870 --> 00:50:10,704
intruders in a world
to which we didn't belong.
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00:51:37,260 --> 00:51:40,491
Translation by LYNN MASSEY
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