Happy Durga Puja

Attempting my first Assamese Sonnet !

The sun is about to set, the water in the pond had a glittering golden shine to it. In our film language we call this the magic hour. Most stunning photography is done during this time of the day. It was a long awaited trip to the tea gardens. I badly needed some time to switch off from my schedule. Minku and Tuki are close friends and we had the privilege to meet them in Muktabari Tea Estate.

As my other half caught up with his friend sharing an old monk, I drifted away to the backyard. Surrounded by fresh garden leaves stood an Assam-Type house with a pond flowing nearby. White ducks swayed in it. It looked even brighter under the shadows of the sun that will soon disappear. The stillness in the air except an odd bird chirp made the moment last in my mind. As I heard echoes of laughter coming from the front garden, I parked myself at the edge of the pond.

A sudden urge prevailed in me to write something… something completely foreign. I wanted to express in a language I never dared to write before although I proudly call it my mother tongue.

Shame on me! I was writing my first Assamese Sonnet in English. I decided to dedicate it to the pond (read river) and Minku’s beautiful backyard


Misiki ke hahi mari
Nemata kaile baru tumi
Ojaan ojaan lage jodiu
Lage kionu, ojibonor aamar aai enazoree

Junak raati, xitol botahor majere
Kee nu koi gola tumi?
Bujibo khujileu janu, paam ne buji tumar monor kotha khini khuli ?

Assam on Al Jazeera..

A current affairs piece for Al Jazeera International for their People and Power slot.
Hazel and I had a roller coaster ride as the army/intelligence followed us in Upper Assam while filming this piece in February 2007.

Our crew consisted of her, me, my driver and a hired red sumo…and of course endless phone calls everyday from AJI.

Research, contacts and ground work done by Sanchayita Sharma.
Film edited and commissioned to Hazel Chandler

Part 2:

What To Do If I Get Kidnapped

I am worried about her. Haven’t heard anything since the past two weeks. She is definitely alive, maybe arrested or beaten up but alive for sure. The whole idea of sending woman filmmakers to cover Nigerian conflict is because of their policy…that they don’t shoot women. They feel it’s a waste of a bullet. Ha! Good for us… but then the Nigerian elections are nearing and anything can happen and she is covering the kidnapping stories there.

My good friend Hazel also edits and handles camera for me. A lot of television companies love her camerawork. She is no doubt good in it. We have had good and sometimes not so good moments but when you work with someone day in and day out they become family therefore “soli jai”. She has picked up some Assamese from me too. At last an email from her ….

…please don’t do anything tricky!
so, its simple really. Kidnappers communicate through a reputable person and you cough up. Preferably immediately and without argument. Don’t let no Hollywood style negotiators tell you different even if they do look like Samuel Jackson., At my end I just have to put up with bad food and be nice to everyone. So far the only kidnappee to be killed was done for at the hand over when those paying up tried to trick them. So don’t, if you don’t mind.

I also have had to change the dynamics of my pockets. Once it was suntan cream, mosi guard and a spare tape. Now its 'make sure you have any medication on you and $200'. I have no idea why $200 dollars- enough to make someone happy and not enough to increase the threat I guess. So my pockets are now full of malaria tablets, strong painkillers and a pair of clean knickers. Don’t want to be the smelly kidnappee who no-one wants to sit next to on the bus. If there is a bus…which I doubt. I am also not supposed to use certain trigger words in emails so if you don’t know where I am, I'm not telling.
But despite the nasty things said about this place, so far its cool. One political rally led by the leading opposition party. Lots of dancing, drumming, men in monkey costumes and oh yes, men with guns. A spectacularly brilliant speech from the candidate who arrived 6 hours late. I can quote it verbatim- I want free schools for everyone and its not what's in my belly that counts.- I dare say! And then he leapt in his car, as the temperature rose and the men with guns got sassy so our fixer made us do the same. Our car that is, not his, but he had agreed to give us an interview so when Juliana shouted down the mike 'gotta go there's gonna be violence' I thought she meant we had to go find it and film it. But no.

Just been strutting on the dance floor- a curious mix of Kela and Michael Jackson- and so far quite like the place. It's Africa, and no matter what crap it goes through, you're always going to meet some of the best people you'll ever know. (except our fixer that is, who is a big big man, useful when trouble strikes, who takes off his belt frequently to 'flog' policemen. I'm not sure how his human rights activism fits in with this and I don’t personally consider it wise. Especially if said policemen has a gun. He also quotes Neitsche (misspelt I'm sure) at Juliana because she's German and I can see her lips tighten. I don’t think he's got long to live.)
She wants us to go schmooze at the posh hotel where all the oil workers hang. Wear bikinis and sip martinis and see if we can charm our way into their confidence. I draw the line at this. I'll do conflict but I will not do bikinis.

So! has Jade Goody grown a brain? did Cliff Richards get married? I hope you are keeping me abreast of the important stuff. Stuck with CNN out here.

Re: What To Do If I Get Kidnapped
The Drifters were in a bus crash but its okay. they are all alive and continuing with their tour, only doing less vigorous dance routines.
Sylvester Stallone has been arrested smuggling a body building drug which is illegal into Australia.
I bought some new shoes today for Camilla's wedding. Already 4 trips to and from the printer have crippled me.

DON'T GET KIDNAPPED PLEASE but more importantly DO NOT FALL FOR SOME OIL TYCOON. THEY'RE A BIG BAG O' BADDIES, I seem to remember from my Dallas-watching days.

An elephantine orphanage in Asom

We've all heard of orphanages for children, but one for elephants is rather hard to believe.

The Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) has set up a first-of-its-kind orphanage centre for elephants inside the Manas National Park in Asom.

The Assam Elephant Orphanage Centre, which is to be inaugurated on Saturday, was established in wake of the increasing number of animals, particularly elephants, becoming orphan in the state.

The Deputy Chief of Bodoland Teritorial Council (BTC) Kampa Borgoyary will introduce three elephant calves in the orphanage on its inauguration. Three others would be introduced later under the supervision of WTI.

The International Fund of Animal Welfare (IFAW) would also extend support to the project and also to other cases of wildlife destitutes.

Elephants Released Into Wild for First Time in India

(Assam, India – 26 February 2007)
IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare) and its partner, WTI (Wildlife Trust of India) today announced that six elephant calves have been successfully released to the wild in Manas National Park.
The elephants—which were hand-raised at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC)—were transported 450 kilometers from India’s Kaziranga National Park to Manas National Park.

Background of the elephants

* On August 28, 2002 CWRC staff rescued a two-week-old elephant calf (male) from a trench on the Numaligarh tea estate. The orphaned calf was brought to CWRC for care. The elephant is now five years old.
* The second elephant calf (male) was one-year-old when it was rescued from flood waters in Digboi by the forest department and brought to the centre on December 8, 2002. The elephant is now six years old and the oldest of the calves.
* The third elephant calf (male) was rescued by CWRC staff from Koliabor near the town of Tezpur on October 3, 2003. It had been stranded and orphaned. The elephant is now three-and-a-half-years old.
* The fourth elephant calf (female) was rescued from the Rupajuli tea estate in Tezpur by estate workers on September 23, 2004. The two-month-old animal had been injured after it fell in a trench and was displaced from its herd. The animal was handed over to CWRC for care. The elephant is now two-and-a-half-years old.
* The fifth elephant calf (female) was rescued from the Barsapori tea estate by estate workers on October 14, 2004. The two-month old calf was displaced from its herd and was handed over to CWRC for care. The elephant is now two-and-a-half-years old.
* The sixth elephant calf (male) was about one-year-old when it was rescued from the Numaligarh tea estate on October 19, 2004 and brought to the centre for care. The elephant is now three-and-a-half-years old.

In Manas the elephants will be reintegrated into a wild herd once they are familiarized with the area. It is the first time elephants have been rehabilitated and released to the wild in India. Sri Lanka and Kenya are the only other countries to have successfully released hand-raised elephants into the wild.

“The elephants will be allowed to move freely in the jungle during the daytime under the supervision of a keeper,” said Dr. N. V. K. Ashraf, Director Wild Rescue of WTI. “At night, for their security, they will be sheltered in a stockade built in an area of about one hectare [about 10000 sq. meters].”

The elephants were transported to an area of Manas called Doimari, an ideal elephant habitat located far from the nearest human habitation. It is the biggest continuous forest habitat (unfragmented habitat) in India’s north-east region and extends from the Indian state of Assam up to the country of Bhutan.

“All six elephants are being radio-collared for post-release monitoring. If there is a problem we can find and rescue them,” said Dr. Bhaskar Choudhry, wildlife veterinarian of WTI.

The six elephants, which range between two-and-a-half and six-years-old, were hand-raised at the rehabilitation center (CWRC) in Kaziranga. The young calves were rescued from different parts of Assam and have been at the centre from one-to-five years. CWRC is India’s first multi-species rehabilitation facility and was set-up in partnership between WTI, IFAW, and the Assam Forest Department.

M. C. Malakar, Chief Wildlife Warden, Assam and D. M. Singh, Kaziranga Park Director were present at the elephants send-off from the centre in Kaziranga. Kampa Borgoyari, Deputy Chief of the Bodo Territorial Council (BTC) received the elephants in Manas.

A six-member veterinary team comprising doctors from the College of Veterinary Science, Guwahati, Dr. Bijoy Dutta and Dr. Bhupen Sarma, Dr. Bhaskar Choudhry, Dr. Anjan Talukdar, and Dr. Ashraf of WTI, and Dr. Raj Jyoti Deka (as independent consultant) accompanied the elephants on their journey from Kaziranga to Manas.

A. J. Cady, Director Animals in Crisis and Distress, IFAW, and Vivek Menon, Executive Director, WTI also joined the elephants. Mr. Cady symbolically released the elephants in Manas, signifying arrival to their new home. The exercise is part of the elephant rehabilitation programme initiated by WTI and IFAW with support from the Assam Forest Department.


For media-related inquiries, contact:
Chris Cutter (IFAW, US)
Tel: +1 (508) 737-4623
Email: ccutter@ifaw.org

Mandeepa Ahluwalia (WTI)
Tel: +91 981 168 8851
Email: mandeepa@wti.org.in

The National Games in Asom

It’s been a few years since we heard that the National Games would take place in Guwahati and along with it, came the speculations- can Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi and him team make it happen? Is it possible to even consider that such an event is feasible in a dysfunctional state like Asom? Of course Manipur had done it earlier and they probably have the highest rebel groups in North-East hence, equally if not more dysfunctional than us. I have to be honest here. The games being postponed several times, personally I gave up hope, went ahead and booked my filming schedule months in advance which I couldn’t change. My loss, as my shoot collided with the games.

All went well. The National Games indeed take place, ULFA kept their promise and the state did a fantastic job of hosting it. I badly wanted to be there cheering for our team. I have done that many a times as a child when Deuta was intensely involved with the Bordoloi Trophy. Cinema and Sports have been around in our house as far as I can remember. We had players living with us as family members and the endless parties Maa hosted before our table tennis team left for the Nationals. I guess it also reminded me of my Badminton days. The unity, the power and of course the pride I had (by the way still do), when I represented the state once in Mini Nationals. Today, I think I will lose a game to an amateur but then, that’s another story.

I could empathise with the participants, their joy of not just representing the state but also being the host team and if that is not enough, appearing in the top three rankings, not to mention the pressure to win in “home grounds”. This confirms that regardless of us being stamped as a race of “lahe lahe” Asom won gold in speed races like swimming and cycling apart from the other sports. Despite carrying on army operations in some corner of the state, we are still capable of putting up international standard opening and closing ceremonies.

Watching glimpse of the opening ceremony in the telly, I literally had tears in my eyes and a strange sensation ran through my body when Monalisa Barua Mehta (Mithoo ba, as she is know to the family) held the torch. Now, she is one contribution Deuta had made single-handedly to the state and to the country. Those few minutes felt as if I was living every moment through her. Just like a lucid dream going back to yesterdays, where every now and again, Deuta used to carry me with him to Kanaklata Stadium where I was fed strawberry milkshakes out of see-through plastic cans and got pampered like a living doll by his colleagues and players…the summer training camps, the boiled eggs and stale toasts for breakfast in that dilapidated canteen behind the then RG Barua Guest House, the half-fan saloon where most of us got the same crew cut (be it men or women) the national and international coaches for table tennis and above all, the bubbling charged up atmosphere to play and win for the state. Stories Deuta used to fill us about his collaborations with his friend and mentor R G Barua, his experience in Seoul and Los Angels Olympics where Maa also accompanied him and she literally had to open the twist of her saador to show some inquisitive crowd as to how it is worn, the souvenirs that still stand in our living room as memories of those bygone years. Last week, I silently observed Deuta open his wardrobe and brush his old blazer that said Phani Sharma- Vice President (Indian Olympic Association). Being an excellent table tennis player during his youth (his peers still talk about his forehand) I can only wonder the emotions he must have been through during the past two weeks. Strangely, he never pushed us to play any game but gave us the atmosphere and perhaps he takes solace in the fact that all his four children represented the state in different games.

Anyway, coming back to my filming, my last interview was with the Chief Minister and being given passes to watch the closing ceremony by the man himself I thought it might be a good idea to let my hair down after the roller coaster exciting filming experience we had. Sitting among the 30,000 odd spectators and watching a colourful presentation I could feel the buzz around me. I am sure some of them might have been victims of terror or at least have been effected by it to a certain extend at some point of time but it felt like they were impatiently waiting for a new renaissance to flush away their pain which they found in the games.

Undoubtedly, Tarun Uncle deserves all the pat on his back for providing the platform to the state but we must take a moment out to thank and appreciate the hard work put in by the people who implemented it and turned it into a success.

My sincere thanks and appreciation to the labours, contractors, builders of the brand new stadiums, to the Assam Police, Guwahati City Police- constables to IGP Mallik who himself had been a victim of terror years ago) , all IPS officers, Security Forces, Players and their parents/family for their sacrifices and dedication, Nagaland for their first participation, Organisers, Coaches, Cooks, Cleaners, School Children and Celebrities for their splendid performances, Media, Commissioner Sports and National Games (IAS Officers) Director of Sports Dhruba Hazarika, Naba Kumar Das (IAS), ACC, Pradyut Bordoloi, Hemanta Biswa Sarma and their colleagues who came together to made it happen. I sincerely apologise if I have left out anyone which I sure must have. Nevertheless, your input is valued and admirable. Last but not the least I request the players of our state to continue marvelling in their respective sports in the coming years and take advantage of the wonderful facilities they have now, which we never had years ago.

This certainly proves that if we, the people of Asom want to achieve success, we can, provided we put our mind, heart and hands together unanimously. Like many reading this piece, it too makes me proud to be part of the same soil.

Blue Corn.. Girl Band from Mizoram

Song: Krismas Nang Nen
Band: Blue Corn
This is an all girls band from Mizoram--Mizos have a zest for music and God has gifted then with beautiful voices.
It is a pity that Kimkimi the third member of this band is not on the video.Filmmed by a local mizo production company.

Guwahati, February 3rd 2007

It rained at dusk today. The first shower we had this year. I had almost forgotten the smell of the red wet earth that I used to love as a child. I looked out of my window. The increasing sound of the drops that hit the tin rooftop next door drove me to our portico. It felt strange to re-live the moment under the silvery red sky. Birds flew away in flocks…they seemed to be in a hurry. The lightening on those far fetched hills caught my attention. Tall bamboo trees by our driveway danced to the tunes of the wind and that wet stray dog across the street?

Under the wooden shed of a small shop stood a half drenched man holding a live chicken by its legs and he stood still the whole time, as if, cursing the rain for the delay it had caused him. The chicken on the other hand looked rather confused, fluttering her wings every now and then. Cars and busses were slowing down and it was time to switch their headlights on. The rickshaw pullers with their water drenched eyes paddled harder just so to keep their momentum against the rain. A couple briskly walked pass, their handkerchiefs wrapped around their head acting as make-shift umbrellas. Distant hustling passer-bys voices echoed with the sound of the drops. My mother’s full bloomed Dahlias quenched their thirst and like my mood, loved every bit of it.

As the wind gush the curtains away, I got a glimpse of my niece in the next room, oblivion to the rain, training her sa-re-ga-ma with her brand new harmonium. For me it added music to the ambiance. The girl on the other side of the fence rushed to her backyard and haphazardly collected the clothes from the washing line, the lonely swing; water patiently dripping from the rain that has now stopped. It seemed to have washed away the dust it had collected over the winter. My heart wanted to feel, touch and dance with the rain but my whole new British attitude stopped me and sensibly reminded me of my impending commitments and that I couldn’t afford to sport a cold. Now with a slight chill in the air, I need to wrap myself up, pick that brewing cup of tea and get on with my mundane life.

Bidexot Apun Manuh (close ones abroad)

Bidexot Apun Manuh (BAM) is a popular Assamese television show that follows the lives of Assamese living abroad. Presented in a travelogue style, it interviews the Non Resident Assamese (NRA)'s in informal surroundings. Telecast over Guwahati Doordarshan Kendra(DDK) since 2001, the second series of BAM (Dwitiya) is currently telecast on DDK every Sunday at 7.30 pm (IST).
The show hosted and directed by Bobbeeta Sharma (first Miss North-East) has completed more than 150 episodes covering countries like USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Dubai, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, France, Netherlands and Norway so far.
Script:Jimoni Choudhury
Music: Manas Hazarika
Editor:Pranjal Phukan
Camera: Chinmoy Sharma, Sharad Verma, and Ravindra Badgaiyan
Producers: Chinmoy Sharma & Bobbeeta Sharma
Production House:Guwahati based "Sangita Advertising".

Watch the title song of (BAM) sung by Saju... a hit song among people of Assam.