The Firm Land

A remote village by the Indian Ocean is struck by a deadly disease. A man comes from the sea, seeking the firm land… While death lurks, the villagers decide to turn to the government for help. But as they feel unable to present their demand by themselves, some men are sent to the capital with the mission of hiring mediators, ‘learned men’, who could plead their cause. Lost in the big city, the countrymen cannot find any help and get into trouble. They are rescued by some street-boys who introduce them to a disillusioned former professor. He pushes the villagers to go and besiege the ministry themselves until their complaints are listened to. But they are turned down roughly by the administration. When a ruined and melancholy aristocrat organizes a great feast, they sing, dance, talk about happiness and life.
This is a fable about the passing of time, the hopes of men haunted by loneliness and death. Central to it are the corruption and bureaucracy of governments, but also a humane portrait of a large, vibrant Indian city. A bittersweet, romantic allegory, which aims to show the universality of the suffering of the poor all over the world, and the strength of the human spirit to transcend social and material circumstances. Chapoor Haghighat: ‘I wanted to give this film both a realistic and mythical approach, using a mixture of dream and reality’. (EH)

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