Films with: Abrams, Nilima

Kali Yuga chants

"Kali Yuga Chants follows 'Uncle' and 'Aunty' and the 35 children they're raising in a makeshift foster family in India. Shot over ten years, the film chronicles the kids' transformation from begging and picking through garbage, to learning meditation and math, karate and culinary arts. Raised with a mix of cultures and spiritual practices, but rooted in Hinduism, the kids become expert chanters of ancient Vedic mantras, which helps them to break free from the caste and gender stigma of their births, but still brings backlash from established elites. As the whole group struggles to build a permanent home, external and internal complications threaten to tear the 'family' apart, while raising questions central to the human condition."--Film website: http://splicecream.com/#/kyc/.

DVD 13080

Tent village

"The Tent Village is a collaborative work between Nilima [Abrams] and four teenagers she worked with in India. After learning basic filmmaking, the students decided to film at roadside hovels where garbage workers and hair-collectors live. Their unique access and perspectives are revealed in the film."--Film website. Topics of conversation include family life, education, and work under extreme poverty, as well as the struggle for dignity--especially for girls and women--in a caste society. "A nuanced view into the lives of roadside dwellers in India, filmed by their teenaged children. ... An unflinching yet gentle exploration of the interplay between external oppression, internalized self-defeat, and hope."-- Container.

DVD 12125