Garden of Memories (Baganiya) trailer [postcolonial memory within Bangladesh's tea plantations]

Описание: In Bangladesh’s tea garden, the stories of three different generations of tea plantation workers reveal the legacy of colonization, labor exploitation and resilience.

SYNOPSIS
The British East India Company began tea plantations in Bengal and Assam in the early 19th century, forcibly relocating diverse ethnic laborers. Established in 1910, Champarai is one such remote tea garden in northeast Bangladesh. In this tea garden, each leaf silently witnesses an unknown story.
Padmoluv Bunarjee, an elderly chieftain, is dying. In his final days, memories of the British colonial rulers linger. In stark contrast, Sojoy Yadav, a young chieftain, diligently serves the tea plantations. He is unhappy and bound by the history that traps him. Chandan Bauri, on the other hand, is a dynamic school dropout who struggles to break free from the cycle of poverty and exploitation that persists in his community.
Their stories reflect the hardship and resilience of generations of indigenous tea workers known as Baganiyas.

INFORMATION
56 minutes | English subtitles | HD (1920×1080)
Bangladesh | 2019
Director: Humaira Bilkis

AWARDS & FILM FESTIVALS
1. Official Selection, 2022 London Indian Film Festival
2. Official Selection, 2022 Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF)
3. Official Selection, 2021 Bangladesh European Union film festival (BEUFF)
And more.

HIGHLIGHT ENDORSEMENT
“Humaira Bilkis’ documentary exposes the neglected stories of Bangladesh’s tea workers, whose colonial past and exclusion from recent revolutionary changes reveal deep, systemic inequalities.”
Priyanka Hutschenreiter, Untold Magazine

“Through the lives of these three individuals from different generations, Humaira Bilkis weaves an elegant tale of labourers, whose lives are still impacted by the framework of colonial rules that still govern the tea industry.”
London Indian Film Festival

REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION
1. This film reveals the complex legacies of colonialism, poverty and labor exploitation. It also explores how colonial legacies, class systems and economic exclusion continue to shape the lives of people in contemporary South Asia.
2. The stories of three different generations of tea plantation workers in this film provide insights into the nostalgia and historical memory of the post-colonial era, reflecting the struggle and continuity of historically shaped systems in the contemporary era, and highlighting the themes of social mobility and resistance.
3. Set against the backdrop of a lush yet politically charged tea plantation, Garden of Memories (Baganiya) provokes critical thinking on themes of post-colonial identity, structural poverty, generational trauma and resistance.