Indian Scene of Procession (1903)

Kolkata with Sue Perkins

Sue Perkins immerses herself in the complex life of Kolkata and sees how it is reinventing itself as a megacity with a reputation for eccentricity, culture and tolerance.

Lighthouse

After the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004, widowed women struggled to receive aid due to their social status. Following the story of Mrs. Manjula along with many other women from Tamil Nadu, the challenges faced by millions of widows across the country are illuminated. From being ostracized to denied basic rights and economic opportunities, widows in India endure a cycle of discrimination and marginalization. “Kalangarai” meaning "lighthouse" in Tamil, is an organization dedicated to empowering women through initiatives such as self-help groups and educational programs. Throughout the film, "Lighthouse" illustrates the emotional journeys and resilience of these women, as well as the active change that Kalangarai strives to achieve. This documentary urges global awareness and support for widowed women’s rights, as the women’s struggles depict the intersectionality of gender, poverty, and social injustice.

Nehru

Divided into three parts — The Awakening, The Struggle, and Freedom — this is a biographical film on Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India. Relying on Nehru's writings and speeches, the film traces the evolution of Nehru from his birth through his life. It also deals with the effect of history on Nehru and in turn his impact on the world.

Wonders of the Monsoon

The wildlife and cultures of southern Asia have been shaped by one of the greatest phenomena on Earth: the mighty monsoon winds that sweep across this vast region, turning drought into deluge. All life – human and animal – is dominated by this rampaging weather system. From the northern shores of Australia to the highest peaks of the Himalayas and the wind-blown deserts of northern India to the lush equatorial forests of Borneo, this series makes an exhilarating journey through the lands of the monsoon. Along the way, it offers a taste of the variety and colour of the different regions’ most extraordinary wildlife and cultures and the way they cope with the tumultuous weather. This is the story of a relationship between humans and nature that has grown across thousands of years – all living in the shadow of the monsoon.

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.

Trip to Manipur

Amateur film of a road trip through northeastern India, showing traditional dances and a gigantic flower float.

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.

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.

A Punjab Village

Richly detailed amateur ethnographic film on the agrarian economy and society in rural Punjab.

A Road in India

Life on the road in India, showing the traffic, people and animals.

Temples of India

Hindu temples at Benares and Belur and the mythologies associated with them.

Delhi Durbar and Coronation

Jaw-dropping pomp and pageantry at the 1911 Delhi Durbar

India Speaks

A documentary of explorer Richard Halliburton's travels on the Indian sub-continent, featuring a mix of real and staged footage.

Between the Lines: India's Third Gender

Repping best view to date into the world of the Indian eunuch, “Between the Lines: India’s Third Gender” may not answer all the questions it poses, but helmer Thomas Wartmann provides an intimate glimpse at a community whose members are considered pariahs and conduits of supernatural force. Following shutterbug Anita Khemka in her quest to discover why these castrated men fascinate and repel, docu concentrates on three personalities and uses them as guides to their highly stratified world. Under its nautch skirts, film has strong enough legs to step out into international arthouses.

The Power of Utopia: Living with Le Corbusier in Chandigarh

With the construction of the Indian planned city of Chandigarh, the Swiss and French architect Le Corbusier completed his life's work 70 years ago. Chandigarh is a controversial synthesis of the arts, a bold utopia of modernity. The film accompanies four cultural workers who live in the planned city and reflects on Le Corbusier's legacy, utopian urban ideas and the cultural differences between East and West in an atmospherically dense narrative.

Machines

This portrayal of the rhythm of life and work in a gigantic textile factory in Gujarat, India, moves through the corridors and bowels of the enormously disorienting structure—taking the viewer on a journey of dehumanizing physical labor and intense hardship.

Top Gear: The Great Adventure 5

The gang embarks on a trade mission to India. Equipped with three old British cars and a range of uniquely British products, they set off on an epic road trip across one of the world's most fascinating and challenging countries.

One Ticket Please

A documentary about a 78-year-old Indian woman in New York who is the world's most passionate theatergoer. Nicki Cochrane has been seeing a play every day for more than 25 years, acquiring free tickets using a variety of ingenious means.

Uttarakhand, aux sources du Gange

Plot unavailable

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.

Always for Pleasure

An intense insider's portrait of New Orleans' street celebrations and unique cultural gumbo: Second-line parades, Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest. Features live music from Professor Longhair, the Wild Tchoupitoulas, the Neville Brothers and more. This glorious, soul-satisfying film is among Blank's special masterworks. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 1999.

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.

Delhi Durbar

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

Indian Elephants in the Service of Man

Indian elephants in action as working animals and in hunting.

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.

Lahore - Refugees from India

Millions of Muslims flee to Lahore in the newly created state of Pakistan, prompted by the partition of British India.

Edward Prince of Wales' Tour of India: Calcutta and Delhi

The future Edward VIII opens a durbar and enjoys a day at the races before inspecting the fire brigade in Calcutta.

Meena

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

Our Greatest Ambassador

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

Edward Prince of Wales' Tour of India: Madras, Bangalore, Mysore and Hyderabad

This official travelogue of a royal tour follows the Prince on a series of regimental displays and a tiger hunt.

Edward Prince of Wales' Tour of India: Malakand, Kapurthala and Dehra Dun

The future Edward VIII visits Malakand, Kapurthala and opens the Royal Military College at Dehra Dun

Unravel

Unravel follows the Western worlds least wanted clothes, on a journey across Northern India, from sea to industrial interior. They get sent to Panipat, a sleepy town and the only place in the world that wants them, recycling them back into yarn. Reshma is a bright, inquisitive woman working in a textile recycling factory in small time India, who dreams of travelling the vast distances the clothes she handles have. While Reshma shows us how these garments get transformed, she and other women workers reflect on these clothes. Despite limited exposure to western culture, they construct a picture of how the West is, using both their imagination and the rumours that travel with the cast-offs.

Jag Mandir: The Eccentric Private Theatre of the Maharaja of Udaipur

Jag Mandir is a quiet and often overlooked film in the vast oeuvre of Werner Herzog. Apparently, 20 hours of footage was shot that covered the whole fest and the film hardly presents us a twentieth of that. A native walking into the film in between may well fail to immediately realize that it is his country that is being shown and these are figures from the mythology of various sections of his nation. The bulk of the film consists of footage of an elaborate theatrical performance for the Maharana Arvind Singh Mewar at the City Palace of Udaipur, Rajasthan staged by André Heller.

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.

Edward Prince of Wales' Tour of India: Bikaner, Lucknow, Benares, Nepal and Great Tiger Shoot

The future Edward VIII enjoys receptions, playing polo and hunting tigers on his royal tour.