Calcutta Topical No. 1 (1925)

By the River

Varanasi is the Indian city where Hindus go to die. Stretching along the Ganges, Varanasi holds great spiritual significance because Hindu scriptutres say that anyone who dies there will attain moksha—liberation from the cycle of rebirth. Berlin-based director Dan Braga Ulvestad captures life and death in India’s heartland in this moving documentary filled with exquisite cinematic moments. By the River starts its narrative journey with the city’s “death hotels,” dedicated apartments where people wait to die, sometimes for decades, so they can be cremated on the banks of the Ganges.

Chelsea FC - Season Review 2016/17

38 games, 30 wins. Record-breaking Chelsea are the kings of English football once again, Premier League champions for a fifth time. Masterminded by Italian genius Antonio Conte, who wore his heart on his sleeve, kicking every ball, making every tackle and celebrating every goal, the Blues have been reshaped into a formidable force. And the Bridge waved goodbye to a legend. John Terry's emotional farewell brought the curtain down on a fantastic career and a sensational season.

Indian Elephants in the Service of Man

Indian elephants in action as working animals and in hunting.

Sports in the Indian Army

A demonstration of sport and fitness by members of the Indian Army.

Our Greatest Ambassador

Richly detailed record of the Prince of Wales' Indian tour.

Edward Prince of Wales' Tour of India: Indore, Bhopal, Gwalior and Delhi

The future Edward VIII enjoys a stately procession and visits the Taj Mahal before meeting senior Indian royalty.

Edward Prince of Wales' Tour of India: Bombay, Poona, Baroda, Jodhpur and Bikaner

The future Edward VIII visits his Empire, with Indian royalty, elephants, palaces and temples.

Her Excellency Lady Lytton At The Victoria Memorial

Lady Pamela Lytton, wife of the Governor of Bengal, visits the grand marble Victoria Memorial in Calcutta.

Born Into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids

Documentary depicting the lives of child prostitutes in the red light district of Songachi, Calcutta. Director Zana Briski went to photograph the prostitutes when she met and became friends with their children. Briski began giving photography lessons to the children and became aware that their photography might be a way for them to lead better lives.

Ajmer

Film of local events in Ajmer province including the fair at Pushkar.

A Suitable Girl

A Suitable Girl follows three young women in India struggling to maintain their identities and follow their dreams amid intense pressure to get married. The film examines the women's complex relationship with marriage, family, and society.

Imphal Bazaar

A scenes from a tour of Manipur State and a women's bazaar in Imphal.

Fascinating India

"Fascinating India" spreads an impressive panorama of India’s historical and contemporary world. The film presents the most important cities, royal residences and temple precincts. It follows the trail of different religious denominations, which have influenced India up to the present day. Simon Busch and Alexander Sass travelled for months through the north of the Indian subcontinent to discover what is hidden under India’s exotic and enigmatic surface, and to show what is rarely revealed to foreigners. The film deals with daily life in India. In Varanasi, people burn their dead to ashes. At the Kumbh Mela, the biggest religious gathering of the world, 35 million pilgrims bathe in holy River Ganges. This is the first time India is presented in such an alluring and engaging fashion on screen.

Darjeeling

This amateur film gives us a fair idea of the opulent life enjoyed by members of the British government in India.

Wonderful Temples of India

A Christian take on 'Edenless' India, where heathens are unafraid of snakes, and build 'interesting' temples to their gods.

Delhi Durbar

A film produced to celebrate the coronation of George V as King-Emperor at the Imperial Durbar of 1911.

Millions Can Walk

Hundreds of thousands of Indian men and women – indigenous inhabitants and landless farmers – demand their right to existence by making a 400 kilometre protest march from Gwalior to Delhi. How can one fight for one’s rights without using violence? With such an important contemporary question, the film spreads far beyond the borders of India. It shows the multiple facets of this imposing protest march and focuses as well on the daily realities of these proud people.

Marching in the Dark

In a drought-struck region in India, suffering from climate change and a high suicide rate amongst farmers, a group of resilient women farmers, who recently lost their husbands, is coming together with a local psychologist to learn counselling and help others in grief.

India Cabaret

A documentary exploring the "respectable" and "immoral" stereotypes of women in Indian society told from the point of view of 2 strip-tease dancers in a cabaret house in Bombay.

A Rifle and a Bag

Somi is pregnant with her second child. A girl, she hopes. Together with her husband she prepares for this new phase of their parenthood. It means that their son has to go to school, but as an ex-Naxalite that is tough to achieve in contemporary India, where people like them are third-rate citizens. They lack the certificates and an opaque bureaucratic process doesn't help. Directors Isabella Rinaldi, Cristina Hanes and Arya Rothe of the NoCut Film Collective concentrate on Somi's close family ties, painting a portrait of ex-Naxalites in India. Once, Somi and her husband were communist rebels fighting for the rights of Indian tribes. However, to safeguard their family's welfare, they surrendered to the government in exchange for marginal compensation and simple accommodation.

The Last Maneater: Killer Tigers of India

Sunderbans (Forest of Beauty) is in West Bengal, India, and is the only place on Earth that is the natural habitat of Royal Bengal Tigers that have never known to be fearful of humans. One tiger has been known to kill three fully grown men, leaving behind orphans and widows who belong to poor tribes, dependent on harvesting wild honey and fishing, in a swampy mangrove region. About 80 people are killed annually by these ferocious beasts with razor-sharp jaws, whose forepaws can shatter bones, and sharp teeth can pierce a skull in one bite. Amidst religious superstitions, the narrator attempts to explain the cause behind their taste for human meat in a region devoid of electricity, roadways, firearms and safe drinking water, and why the villagers continue to live there despite of being stalked and mauled on land and water alike.

The Golden Thread

In the heyday of the jute industry, millions of people in Bengal made their living doing this laborious work, which has hardly changed since the industrial revolution. The 100-year-old machinery has been endlessly repaired. State aid kept this sustainable alternative to plastic going, but its future looks bleak.

The Ramayana

The Little Ballet Troupe of Bombay performs a "puppet ballet" of the Hindu epic, the Ramayana.

Delhi Durbar

Aristocracy, army, elephants and more mark the start of the 1903 Durbar.

Calcutta Pageant

Scenes from a lavish pageant held during the royal visit to India, celebrating King George V’s coronation.

Procession of Elephants with Howdahs - India

An elephantine spectacle, likely part of the celebrations for the visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to India.

Meena

Meena is a documentary film about sex trafficking in India based on a true story.

Tiger

Journey alongside a young tigress raising her cubs in the fabled forests of India.

Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun

An intimate and thrilling portrait of a young Siksika woman and the deep bonds between her father and family in the golden plains of Blackfoot Territory as she prepares for one of the most dangerous horse races in the world… bareback.

Chelsea FC - Season Review 2009/10

Led by the masterful Carlo Ancelotti Chelsea FC broke record after record as the club secured a scintillating Premier League and FA Cup Double for the first time in its glorious history. The Blues were simply untouchable as they sealed a memorable title triumph on the last day of the season with an 8-0 thrashing of Wigan, taking their tally for the year to 103 goals - a new Premiership milestone. The season was filled with many magical memories including home and away victories over traditionally the other big three - Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool. The FA Cup Final proved the perfect finish to an epic campaign as another Didier Drogba goal sealed a deserved victory against a stubborn Portsmouth to seal a famous Double and leave the fans dancing with delight!

Chelsea FC - Season Review 2003/04

Few will ever forget the 2003/04 season, as Chelsea recorded our second best ever seasonal campaign, propelling ourselves back into the big three of the English League with our second highest finish, and progressing further than ever before in the UEFA Champions League. There may be no trophies to show after a thrilling year, but strong foundations have been laid and there have been fond memories created along the way. It was a season to remembers as Claudio Ranieri prepared his group of international superstars for an attack on all fronts. On home soil, the team recorded the most points we have ever attained in the top-flight, with some fine victories along the way, most notably against arch-rivals Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, whilst in Europe, the 4-0 defeat of Lazio in their own back yard, became the biggest win by any foreign club on Italian turf at that time.

Chelsea FC - Season Review 2004/05

As Frank Lampard rounded the Bolton keeper and stroked in Chelsea's second goal, the dream had been achieved and the Blue flag was flying high. "Chelsea Barclays Premier League Champions 2005". For the first time in 50 years Chelsea are the English Champions. This is the official story of their fantastic double winning 2004-2005 season. It was the year that José Mourinho's side became the most feared in this country and on the continent. They defeated all comers, in the most successful campaign in the club's history, breaking numerous records along the way. Most points in a campaign, achieved ironically at Old Trafford and surpassing the record held by the home team, and most wins in a Premier League season, quite an achievement! Relive every Premiership game, from the curtain raiser against Manchester United to lifting the League trophy against Charlton.

Chelsea FC - Season Review 2008/09

The 2008/09 season will go down as one of the most dramatic and exciting in Chelsea FC's long and illustrious history. A mid-season change of manager, a devastating departure from the Champions League and a famous victory in The FA Cup Final are just some of the moments to remember. After a scintillating start to the season which saw the Blues undefeated until late October hopes were high that the club could reclaim the Premier League crown and secure an elusive first Champions League title. But a slump in form and fortune saw the club's title aspirations disappear along with manager Luiz Felipe Scolari. The arrival of Guus Hiddink energised the team and revived ambitions of securing a trophy but with the Premier League just out of reach and hearts broken in the Champions League, their perseverance was rewarded with a fantastic win at Wembley in The FA Cup Final ensuring another season of silverware for the mighty Blues.

Chuckwagon

Focusing on the sport of chuckwagon racing at the Calgary Stampede, captured through a mix of aerial, POV, and ringside footage, the film is ahead of its time in the way it captures adrenaline-pumping action. This short documentary offers a ringside view of the chuckwagon race, star attraction of the world-famous Calgary Stampede. Once ponderous Percheron and Clydesdale draught thundered around the course. Now they are racers, and it takes a firm hand to guide such horsepower.

Herzschlag der Kontinente

Plot unavailable

Meru

Meru is the electrifying story of three elite American climbers—Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin, and Renan Ozturk—bent on achieving the impossible.

India: Spreading Hate

Since the rise to power of Hindu nationalists in 2014, India has been gradually moving away from democracy towards a regime where ethnic identity prevails. This transition is driven by Hindutva, a Hindu supremacist ideology embodied by Narendra Modi. For the past 10 years, Prime Minister Modi has relentlessly pursued his fascist policy based on Hindu supremacy. This ideology of hatred towards other religions in the country, particularly Islam, has also spread globally. Those who follow this belief want India to be only for Hindus, treating people of other religions, like Muslims or Sikhs as second-class citizens. Attacks against Christians have surged by 400% since Modi's election, accompanied by discriminatory laws targeting Muslims and widespread lynching incidents. Hindutva's influence permeates all levels of Indian society. This documentary thus unveils a darker side of India, far from its portrayal as the world's largest democracy and Gandhi's dream of peace among communities.

The Arms Drop

One night in December 1995, 4 tons of weapons fall from the sky over India. A few days later a Danish man returns to Denmark with a grave secret. Only when an English arms dealer is arrested in India and faces death sentence, does the Dane appear in the large-scale international investigation of the case. With reconstructions and scenes resembling a feature film, the docu-thriller The Arms Drop tells the nerve-racking story of two men who gamble their lives on a joint mission with each their secret agenda, and the political, personal and diplomatic consequences 20 years later.

If Not For You

A tribute film on Bob Dylan, depicting Calcutta's affinity with Dylan through cityscape and interviews of notable Indian musicians who were inspired by him. The film also draws parallels between Dylan's body of work and the Baul tradition of Bengal.

India's Daughter

The story of the short life, and brutal gang rape and murder in Delhi in December 2012 of an exceptional and inspiring young woman. The rape of the 23 year old medical student by 6 men on a moving bus, and her death, sparked unprecedented protests and riots throughout India and led to the first glimmers of a change of mindset. Interwoven into the story line are the lives, values and mindsets of the rapists whom the film makers have had exclusive and unprecedented access to interview before they hang. The film examines the society and values which spawn such violent acts, and makes an optimistic and impassioned plea for change.

Overdose - Run for a Dream

As the carrier of a nation's hopes, there is a lot riding on Overdose. The successes of Hungary's premier racehorse have provided welcome relief from a decades-long legacy of fiscal austerity. But with Big Business cashing in on this symbol of optimism, the horse soon becomes a pawn in a game of egos and politics.

Chelsea FC - Season Review 2020/21

'Making history, not reliving it.' That has been the mantra by which those at Stamford Bridge have lived and died since Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea in 2003. And as the final whistle blew on the final game of the season at the Estádio do Dragão in Portugal, history was made as Chelsea were once again crowned the kings of European football. The intentions of the club were clear from the start of the season, bringing in a host of top-class talent including Timo Werner and Kai Havertz from the Bundesliga, Hakim Ziyech from the Eredivisie, as well as defensive reinforcements in Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell. However all was not going to plan mid-season with inconsistent results and a managerial change suggesting this was going to be no more than a season of transition. But a spectacular turnaround, masterminded by the managerial nous of Thomas Tuchel, led to a top-four Premier League finish, an FA Cup final, and the greatest club prize of them all - the Champions League trophy.

Father Lenin

An evocative and unsettling journey through christian and also deeply communist Kerala. Amidst red flags and altar boys, between the sea and the jungle, mixing the language of reportage and that of fable, the unedited docufilm tells the touching, profound, at times funny stories of a group of priests and nuns in the days leading up to Easter.