For more than 4000 years Indian vessels have been sailing the seas, known as the Indian Ocean. Seamen from Arabia, China and Europe have landed in India's harbours. Where spices and precious stones, silk and cotton cloth were traded, merchants and rajas were benefiting mutually. The profits from these enterprises were invested in the hinterland and contributed to wealth, architecture and the advanced civilisation of various empires.

Even in India this ancient maritime history is not at all well known and hardly researched. However, in the last few years the country has opened up again and India is rediscovering her coasts and the importance of ports and sea trade.

The tree films discover

3 x 43’30 or 3 x 52’’, Digital Beta, 16:9,
produced by Bayerischer Rundfunk and Along Mekong Productions, with support of the Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg, MFG.

part 1: From Gujarat to Bombay
part 2: To the Malabar Coast
part 3: From the Coromandel Coast to Calcutta

 

It stretches for 5.600 kilometres, passes different landscape and features varying cultures and religions: India’s coastline.

The three films follow the coastal territories from the Pakistan border all the way to the southern tip of India and then north again to the city of Calcutta. The films pass along the major coasts of the subcontinent: Gujarat in the Northwest, Malabar in the Southwest, Coromandel in the Southeast and finally the Bengal coast. They highlight Indian culture and history from a maritime angle. They search for traces of the glorious seafaring tradition, they explore the remnants of the old sea trade and they attempt to discover how maritime India presents herself today, in the age of globalisation.

Moving by sailing dhow, by bus or by train, the three films meet people of the Indian coasts, people that live with and of the sea and the sea trade. These people are the focal points of the series.

Film1: From Gujarat to Bombay

In Gujarat, close to the border with Pakistan lies the ancient port of Mandwi. Here we meet Ibrahim, a builder of the customary vessel of the Indian Ocean, the wooden sailing dhow. In Dwarka, one of Indias seven most holy pilgrim places, we are searching for the Hindou traditions of seafaring. A priest is reading the Mahabharatha for us.
Jyotsna is a textile merchant from the port town Porbandar, the city Mahatma Gandhi is born. With Jyotsna we travel to Ahmedabad, the economic heart of Gujarat. Here she has her boutique: from old fabric she designs modern cloths.
Anwar is a ship owner, who sails between India and the Gulf. He takes us with him on his dhow to Bombay.

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Film 2: To the Malabar Coast

To the Malabar coast we sail with Captain Pookoya. In the ancient spice port of Calicut we meet Khunhamed, who knows everything about pepper. He is trading and he has his own spice plantations.
Somewhere in the backwaters of Kerala Minnie has set up a co-operative to weave coir for export. Pius is a priest and historian who is searching for Christian roots.
We travel with him from Musiris, a port where once a Roman temple stood, to the spice belt in the mountains of the West Ghats.
With the niece of the Maharaja of Cochin we learn why international companies use the old harbour as testing ground for new products.

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Film3: From the Coromandel Coast to Calcutta

On the Coromandel coast we patrol with the Indian Coast Guard. We visit Jeyapalan, a jeweller who is a member of the famous money-lending caste of the Chettiar. We follow him from the old port of Poompohar to his hometown Madurai.
In the city of 1000 temples, Kancheepuram, we meet a temple architect and Durai Raj, a silk weaver. Finally, on the river Hooghly, a branch of the holy river Ganges, we join captain Sahai, a pilot, who finds his way along the river even in foggy weather. With him we reach Calcutta.
With architect Manish Chakraborty we explore the city, that started as an old British trading post. We find a town that has an image problem – and a promising future.

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