1989, English, Hindi, 29 min/ 49 min

Direction: Gargi Sen, Sujit Ghosh, Ranjan De

A film on forest, forest dwellers and their problems. Filmed in the area of Ghad (on the foothills of the Himalayas, in the district of Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh), the film documents the struggle of forest dwellers to re-establish their lost rights on the forest.

The people of Ghad have traditionally twisted 'bhabbar', a wild grass, into rope. The grass grows abundantly in the surrounding forests. Once, the community had free access to the grass, but after nationalisation of forests by the British, laws of which were loyally followed by subsequent governments of independent India, their access to this grass became more and more difficult. Very soon the people had to pay a high price for the grass that in reality was their traditional right. But when they came to know of their rights, they were no longer silent.

While documenting this struggle for forest rights, the film also throws up significant questions relating to ownership, and the role of locals in management and conservation of forests.

Research, Script: Gargi Sen, Ranjan De and Sujit Ghosh; Camera and Editing: Ranjan De