Tea Gardens and Temporary Settlements: Documentary Depictions of Tribal Displacements and Adivasi Migrations in Northeast India
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Abstract
This article examines two feature-length documentary films that depict tribal displacement and Adivasi migration in northeast India. Where is My Home (2021) follows internally displaced Bru in settlements across Tripura where they came following ethnic clashes in their native state, Mizoram, in 1997. Kora Rajee (Land of the Diggers, 2006) follows Adivasis from Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh who, since colonial times, have migrated to work in tea gardens in Assam. The discussion highlights shared emphases in these films: firstly, their endeavor to represent Indigenous histories of migration from an Indigenous standpoint; and, secondly, how migration has shaped the cultural life of the communities. The article asserts that, as both films emphasize community voices and perspectives, they reverse the gaze towards Indigenous peoples, albeit through different documentary approaches. Thus, these films disturb and unsettle dominant perceptions about tribal peoples and Adivasis, offering a nuanced understanding of socio-cultural life in postcolonial northeast India.
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Where Is My Home (India 2021, dirs. Samiran Deka and Bhaskar Jyoti Das)
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Kora Rajee (The Land of the Diggers, India 2026, dir. Biju Toppo)
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Tea Gardens and Temporary Settlements: Documentary Depictions of Tribal Displacements and Adivasi Migrations in Northeast India
In: Studies in World CinemaSearch for other papers by Aparna Sharma in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Abstract
This article examines two feature-length documentary films that depict tribal displacement and Adivasi migration in northeast India. Where is My Home (2021) follows internally displaced Bru in settlements across Tripura where they came following ethnic clashes in their native state, Mizoram, in 1997. Kora Rajee (Land of the Diggers, 2006) follows Adivasis from Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh who, since colonial times, have migrated to work in tea gardens in Assam. The discussion highlights shared emphases in these films: firstly, their endeavor to represent Indigenous histories of migration from an Indigenous standpoint; and, secondly, how migration has shaped the cultural life of the communities. The article asserts that, as both films emphasize community voices and perspectives, they reverse the gaze towards Indigenous peoples, albeit through different documentary approaches. Thus, these films disturb and unsettle dominant perceptions about tribal peoples and Adivasis, offering a nuanced understanding of socio-cultural life in postcolonial northeast India.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 138 | 138 | 11 |
| Full Text Views | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 17 | 17 | 0 |
