As someone who has come to love the Himalayas and the beauty of the sub-Himalayan topography, this is my homage to para-Prakriti. There is a strange thrill working on the sketches in the midst of a forest or by a gushing stream. This short film is based on my musings in the heart of the Buxa forests in Alipurduar and beside the river flowing melodiously in the Jayanti plains. The blue and green hills in the distance, the echoing silence broken by the sound of the flowing stream and birds chirpings, do not give you a feeling of solitariness. Stillness here echoes peace vibrations. And this stillness converses constantly, engagingly, so that one listens, not just with sensory ears. The conversations begin with the senses and then permeates into one’s consciousness.
In the monsoon, the riverbed overflows and mother Nature sometimes can be dangerously threatening. There are landslides, earthquakes too. In summer the waters recede, exposing the stones and shingles to the sun and the Nature around. This short film was shot in October, when Nature looks forward to the change of seasons. Free from human intervention, the forests were very alive with insects chirpings, the river incessantly sang her joyful melody. As I sketched the beauty around me, I could feel their presence. They all seemed to be watching and embracing my thoughts as I merged myself with them. Animism, might be a primitive faith, but far from the madding crowd, primitivism is the para-Prakriti. As people in the hills believe that stones, trees, water are spirits, you understand why. The environment around in harmony consorts with love when one tunes in. One becomes a part of that cosmic vibration and my sketches are my way of acknowledging that experience. I had travelled with two of my junior colleagues, Shaktipada kumar and Saikat Sarkar, both nature lovers. The film wouldn’t have been possible without their camera support and their love for me. There is a sequel to this film, which would follow soon. Stay tuned!