UN selects Indian docu for campaign on planting trees.....Mumbai

 

AN INDIAN filmmaker's magical fable about a boy who discovers the solution to global warming has been adopted by the United Nations.

A seven-minute documentary shot by Mumbai-based Nitin Das has become part of the international body's "Plant for the Planet: Billion Tree Campaign" that aims to plant 100 crore trees worldwide each year.

"My friends from Sthithi Ecosphere, an NGO from Sthithi Valley in Himachal Pradesh, asked me to make a film that would document how weather was impacting life there," said the independent filmmaker. "Since documentaries have a limited audience we made into a fantasy tale to broaden our audience."

The documentary portrays the journey undertaken by a boy from a small Himalayan hamlet after the chieftain tells him to seek a solution to the sudden food shortage and climate change in the once-prosperous village.

The boy trudges up mountains and meets a monk who hands him a fistful of seeds. The monk tells him to plant the seeds to restore peace and happiness in his village.

"We explored whether there was any hidden political or other message and when we were assured we uploaded it on our website," said Meryem C. Amar, Information Officer United Nations Environment Programme.

"The UN is running a Billion Tree campaign and I wrote to them about my film, which is in sync with their initiative. They saw it, loved it and now it is on their website," said Das.

Since the launch of the Billion Tree Campaign in January 2007, close to 200 crore trees have been planted around the globe. Actor Amitabh Bachchan has also lent his name to the campaign.

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