From Mcleodganj with Love

Sarah Khan, Class of 2021

Club Atlas, a division of Odyssey, Ashoka University’s nascent travel society, organised its first trip in an ambitious subversion of the infamous Ashokan retreat to the Himalayas: a journey not to the mountains but to the quaint town of McLeodganj to attend the Dharamshala International Film Festival. “Each of the founders love travelling, but it was the very first time we would be taking the lead and taking a group of twenty plus along with us,” said Siddharth Goyal, co-founder of Club Atlas.

The group of twenty-five students set out on 1st November on an overnight bus ride, across the lanes of Panipat, towards the hilly terrain of McLeod Ganj. Arriving at Hostelavie, a “backpacker’s boutique hostel,” Ashokans were, to put it mildly, ill-prepared to brace the chilly winds. However, the fresh air offered a welcome relief from the smog of Sonepat.

McLeodganj, a suburb of Dharamshala, is home to a mix of local Gaddis, Rajputs, Tibetan refugees, and foreign expatriates. The diversity of its inhabitants lends it a unique cosmopolitanism that inspired long-term residents Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam to establish Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF). “Bringing independent cinema to the mountains” is how DIFF advertises itself. A two-minute trailer prefaced every screening; a cinematically mesmerising montage featuring Himachal Pradesh and beyond, ending with a glimpse of the playful side of Dalai Lama — all set to a contemporary rendition of Beethoven’s Für Elise — encapsulated the local theme yet global spirit of the festival.

Ditching festival heavyweights in favour of local talent, DIFF featured a wide, eclectic array of forty-six independent features, shorts, and documentaries. Apart from screenings, we attended Q & A sessions with filmmakers, masterclasses on film techniques including crowdfunding, editing and 4k filmmaking, and a panel featuring Manoj Bajpayee on the “Art of Acting”. There was also a panel discussion on the “MeToo Movement in India” that focussed on the ramifications of the movement on the indie movie circuit. The festival’s stance against sexual harassment was clear; they had no qualms about dropping their closing film, Ere Gowda’s Balekampa, after the filmmaker was accused of sexual assault. Instead, Aijaz Khan’s narrative feature Hamid closed the festival, winning hearts for its tale of a little boy’s search for answers in Kashmir.

DIFF stood out from other film festivals for its unusual location: the Tibetan Children’s Village. There was something profoundly unsettling about watching stories about conflicts and displacement as children continued frolicking and springing about their daily school life. The modest but picturesque setting lent the festival an informal, intimate air, which is lacking in its lavish and large-scale counterparts. As rain struck, filmmakers and students, tourists and locals huddled around bonfires, discussing movies and life over music, tea, and cigarettes. “As someone actively involved with filmmaking, the experience of having a tête-à-tête with numerous filmmakers across the spectrum was incredibly informative,” said Madhav Singh, a first-year associated with Navrang, Ashoka’s film society. At one point, we found ourselves sharing a table with Ukrainian filmmaker Dar Gau, whose critically acclaimed Namdev Bhau: In Search of Silence was the festival’s opening film. Thus was the unique charm of DIFF!

The biting cold didn’t stop us from venturing beyond DIFF to explore the town. An early morning trek to the Bhagsu Falls allowed us to witness the lush twenty-meter waterfall. Connecting academics to experience, Anagha Natraj, a YIF, said, “We had a subject called Ecosophy earlier in the fellowship, and we could relate so much of what we had learnt to Bhagsu. We truly felt connected to the place!” Nestled among the hills was the popular Shiva Cafe. It exuded a bohemian vibe that calmed and catered for our circle of free-spirited college kids. Evenings were spent roaming the streets of McLeodganj lined with Tibetan craft shops and Indo-Israeli-Tibetan restaurants. Like everybody else, Arundhati Srinath, a first-year student, was in awe of the curios and enjoyed the cuisine: “The markets here are totally one of a kind. I got quirky decor for my dorm and absolutely loved the street momos.”

On the last day, we visited the Namgyal Monastery, home to the 14th Dalai Lama, followed by a stop at the Tibetan Museum. In 1959, following China’s invasion of Tibet, the Dalai Lama was offered settlement by erstwhile Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Scores of Tibetans undertook the long journey across hostile terrains to arrive at Dharamshala. Today, it serves as the capital of the Tibetan diaspora and houses the headquarters of the Tibetan government-in-exile. Manini Menon and Nayantara Violet Alva, both third-year political science majors, visited the Central Tibetan Administration. For them, the trip served as an opportunity to gain deeper insight into their academic interests. “We are conducting a research on Majnu Ka Tilla, known as Delhi’s mini-Tibet, and the relationship of its inhabitants to the “state”, whether Indian or Tibetan. We met with representatives of the Central Tibetan Administration, which went really far towards our understanding of the CTA’s operations and its role in the lives of Tibetans around the world,” said Menon.

Chilly nights brought together UGs & YIFs, otherwise strangers on campus, for (legal) drinks, laughs, and stories. “My favourite part about travelling is meeting new people. It’s bizarre how I made loads of friends here that I otherwise would have missed on campus,” said Swarna, a first-year. “Traveling puts people in a special bond.”

The four-day-break in the middle of the semester scurried by, but left us enriched and enlivened. Anagha related, “As a YIF, with such tight schedules and heavy workloads, the fresh air and breathtaking views felt absolutely magical.” Back on campus, we returned to the usual grind of submissions and readings with renewed vigour. In its invitational email, Club Atlas described this trip as “a small step towards what the name ‘Atlas’ seeks to achieve.” A respite from ever-mounting work, impromptu getaways such as this should be on every Ashokan’s bucket list!

The author is a staff writer for the Edict.