Conservation and the climate crisis are loaded words. While writing the film, Sherni, the greatest challenge for me was understanding the dimensions of such complex and delicate topics, and then weaving them into a story.
Through months of research, it became clear that for such a story to be understood, the overarching philosophy had to be clear: The world does not need singular heroes, but community builders to tackle the climate crisis. Another aspect of the film was understanding the cluster of issues that give rise to human-animal conflicts.
I realised that the only way for me to approach the topic was with sound methodology. My research associate and I set about studying various case studies on human-animal conflict and then collating data to ascertain patterns. I referred to the work of Michel Foucault (Biopolitics) and read works of postcolonial scholars such as Achille Mbembe (Necropolitics), among others, and built on that.
When we talk about marginalised communities and initiatives such as health care, mental health or ecology, it is important to remember that the exchange of knowledge and information should always be a two-way street. There is more to learn from communities that have lived through and coped with challenges of various kinds, and to then build on their knowledge. The approach must be to promote leadership rather than force-feed them with an approach that is likely to fail.
The main character in the film, Vidya Vincent, is in a limbo at both her job and personal life, and is struggling to find meaning in her job. But a field-posting as a district forest officer jolts her into a world where the challenges faced by the local community and wildlife are immediate and stark.
{{/usCountry}}The main character in the film, Vidya Vincent, is in a limbo at both her job and personal life, and is struggling to find meaning in her job. But a field-posting as a district forest officer jolts her into a world where the challenges faced by the local community and wildlife are immediate and stark.
{{/usCountry}}But Vincent is not a saviour, the character is self-aware and knows that her job will not allow her to stay in the same place for an extended period. She also knows that her role is to form local allies, engage with the communities dealing with these issues, and arrive at a long-term solution.
While the task is to trap and tranquillise a tigress and move her to a national park nearby, that is just the tip of the iceberg for her. She finds allies in Noorani (a zoologist) and Jyoti (a community leader), who share her sentiments on conservation.
The key insight was that there are no quick fixes to the issues of conservation and the climate crisis. It requires sustained efforts for any change to take place. It takes a different mindset to work in this field, since the climate crisis affects everyone in different ways.
It was important for me to include and engage younger sections of the population. Gen Z is at the forefront of these conversations the world over, because it directly impacts their future. Therefore, the idea of “forest friends”, as a group working with Vincent from within the local community, was added.
The opening and closing of the film have strong surrealistic undertones, and that was intentional. I wanted to open the film with a perspective on the issue. As the silhouette of the beast in the frame reveals a human imitating an animal, the symbolism is meant to make the audience self-reflect.
Initially, the ending of the film was supposed to give Vidya Vincent closure. But the Covid-19 pandemic necessitated a big picture perspective on the issues of conservation. Therefore, I decided to write an eerie, metaphorical ending meant for audiences to reflect on. What is human existence without nature? What will we tell future generations about the feeling of walking through a natural forest and hearing the sounds of birds and insects, rivers and creeks? We are all a part of nature, all human creations are inspired by nature. To be in harmony with nature is the essence of being alive.
This is not something that we can buy back. There is no price tag on nature, once we lose our forests, mountains, rivers and seas, it is lost forever.
Aastha Tiku is the story and screenplay writer of the Vidya Balan-starrer Sherni, a recently-released film on wildlife and conservation issues
The views expressed are personal