Billion dollar international mining companies are rushing to a quiet lush corner of India. There is quick money to be made and virgin forest to plunder. Yet the tribal women of the forest are banding together to fight the mining companies.
In the Orissa tribal culture of Eastern India, woman have always had a dominant role in the social structure. In 2005, more than 3000 Orissa women declared Orissa an ‘Organic State’ and descended on a GM seed distribution centre making a bonfire of the GM seeds. Now, living in one of the largest, richest and most diverse forests of India, the Orissa woman have decided there has been enough illegal mining and destruction of their forest and the government is doing nothing about it.
This film follows the women – many in their 60s, as they decided to arm themselves with axes and patrol the forest against the so called ‘mining mafia’ – those destroying the trees and the wealthy mining company owners.
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Director / Camera Phil Cox
Producer / fixer India Deepti Ramesh
Producer London Giovanna Stopponi
Editor Taimur Khan