Wheel of Time
β 6.4 Β· 2003 Β· 83m Β· Documentary
Wheel of Time is Werner Herzog's photographed look at the largest Buddhist ritual in Bodh Gaya, India.
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Mai
2025
As the months pass through her, Mai gives us a glimpse into old age that explores between being abandoned and being belonged, passing the time and living the time.
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Aravani Girl
2009
Sixteen year olds Palani and Karthik want to become "ladyboys." They're bullied in school and beaten by their families. Their parents would like to see them grow up as normal boys, but they're falling deeper and deeper into the world of the "Aravanis." Loved as dance performers but hated as homosexuals, their stories emblazon the inner conflicts of India's gender culture today.
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Buddha Wild: Monk in a Hut
2008 Β· β 9.5
Buddhist monks open up about the joys and challenges of living out the precepts of the Buddha as a full-time vocation. Controversies swirling within modern monastic Buddhism are examined, from celibacy and the role of women to racism and concerns about the environment.
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Freedom for the Wolf
2017 Β· β 10
The Real Story of Fake Democracy. Filmed over three years in five countries, FREEDOM FOR THE WOLF is an epic investigation into the new regime of illiberal democracy. From the young students of Hong Kong, to a rapper in post-Arab Spring Tunisia and the viral comedians of Bollywood, we discover how people from every corner of the globe are fighting the same struggle. They are fighting against elected leaders who trample on human rights, minorities, and their political opponents.
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India on Film: 1899 β 1947
2017
As part of the 2017 UK-India Year of Culture, the British Council and British Film Institute share a unique collection of films documenting the sights and culture of a bygone India. Filmed between 1899-1947, and preserved in the BFI National Archive since then, these rare films capture many glimpses of life in India, from dances and markets, to hunts and pageantry.
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Six Years of Freedom
1953
This documentary highlights the achievements of India in the political, economic, and international fields since she attained Independence. The framing of her Constitution, the integration of the States and the general elections, the rehabilitation of displaced persons, the river valley projects, and the setting up of a chain of National Laboratories are some of the achievements shown here.
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If Vagina Had Teeth: The Shona Rainmaking Ceremony in Western Mozambique
2009
"Ritual reversals" or "rituals of rebellion" are concepts used for mock rituals performed in Southern and Eastern Africa. During fertility rituals, like rain ceremonies, women in their songs and dances demonstrate obscene behaviour while they behave like men. These are secret performances open strictly for elderly men and women. Still, we were invited to record the rain making ceremony in the land of Chief Chassuka, Manika Province in Mozambique, in order to document the ritual for the younger generations. These rituals are a fading tradition probably due to the special character of the songs and dances.
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The Story of the Weeping Camel
2004 Β· β 7.1
When a Mongolian nomadic family's newest camel colt is rejected by its mother, a musician is needed for a ritual to change her mind.
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The Unreserved
2017 Β· β 5
The Unreserved is an inquiry into the lives of passengers who use the Unreserved Compartment, the cheapest way to travel across India on the Indian Railways system. The film portrays the passengersβ aspirations, efforts and opinions through conversations and personal stories.
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Sacred
2016 Β· β 6.5
Sacred explores cultural and religious ritual as it relates to lifeβs cycles: birth, adolescence, marriage, aging and other key passages of life.
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Orphans of Tibet
2010
Each year, groups of Tibetan children secretly flee their homeland over the Himalayas to reach schools in India founded by the government in exile. Entrusted to smugglers, they are risking their lives by illegally crossing the great Himalayan range, a towering rampart between Tibet and India. The director will take us in the Mussorie school, in North India, where two thousand four hundred children have been rescued. They have left behind their family childhood and are now considered as orphans. We will discover the itineraries of Sonam, aged nine, and Dholma, the little new girl of the school. Here in India, they are taught about Tibetan culture and will find out about the history of their country and their ancestors. Sonam and Dholma's story is that of thousands of Tibetan children. Are they orphans of a lost country or bearers of hope who will save an endangered culture?
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10 Questions for the Dalai Lama
2006 Β· β 7.3
How do you reconcile a commitment to non-violence when faced with violence? Why do the poor often seem happier than the rich? Must a society lose its traditions in order to move into the future? These are some of the questions posed to His Holiness the Dalai Lama by filmmaker and explorer Rick Ray. Ray examines some of the fundamental questions of our time by weaving together observations from his own journeys throughout India and the Middle East, and the wisdom of an extraordinary spiritual leader. This is his story, as told and filmed by Rick Ray during a private visit to his monastery in Dharamsala, India over the course of several months. Also included is rare historical footage as well as footage supplied by individuals who at great personal risk, filmed with hidden cameras within Tibet.
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