As part of the temporary exhibition Environmental Injustice - Indigenous Peoples' Alternatives, which runs until 21 August 2022, the Sunday film is back in action! Films addressing the climate emergency and the impact of environmental change on indigenous peoples and local communities will be screened throughout the exhibition.

Char is an island on the river that forms the border between India and Bangladesh. There, Rubel and his family live alongside others who have lost their homes. This island emerged as a gift from the river to give to the people as a refuge after drowning their village when the water level rose. But this gift is made of sand, a short-lived geological reaction after the upstream dam was started.

Driven by necessity, the people have appropriated this new territory - like the birds - to set up a smuggling business. Cattle, alcohol, rice and other goods are smuggled under the noses of customs patrols with admirable intelligence: a heroic battle for survival that earns Rubel just enough to dream of a better future, although (or because) Char will be nothing more than a stage in his life.

Sourav Sarangi has observed this soggy microcosm for many years, using different cameras to capture heterogeneous, sometimes almost apocalyptic images. His story of a boy growing up ends with an open ending, leaving a sense of wonderfully curious amazement.

Film in Bengali with French subtitles.

Trailer available