Private Project

Maraluva Daari (Path of Return)

Maraluva Daari interweaves mythology, ecology and storytelling into a tale where more-than-humans in the Anthropocene ask if a path of return can be found.

The 24-minute narrative documentary juxtaposes visuals of feral nature in the city with a conversation between female characters who were transformed into non-humans in the Ramayana, it reimagines agency with a self-reflexive poem in Kannada, offering a new, local prism for thinking about interdependence and challenging human superiority.

  • Jayasri Sridhar
    Director
  • Jayasri Sridhar
    Writer
  • Arpana HS
    Writer
  • NID Ford Foundation
    Producer
  • Amal Zen
    Director of Photography
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short, Student
  • Genres:
    Ecology, Narrative Documentary, Feminist
  • Runtime:
    23 minutes 49 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    February 29, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    60,000 INR
  • Country of Origin:
    India
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Language:
    Kannada
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad
Director Biography - Jayasri Sridhar

Jayasri Sridhar is a filmmaker, designer, and writer with a Bachelor of Design in Film and Video Communication from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. Her interdisciplinary practice spans several mediums and leans towards social, ecological and more-than-human themes.

She has presented her work at several international conferences and film festivals, including Pivot 2020 and AD•rec 2024, Paris. Her writing has been featured in Writing Natures Magazine by Shared Ecologies and Bilori Journal. A Hindustani Classical vocalist in training and avid reader, she brings a deep love of lifelong learning to everything she does, and enjoys working with collaborators from across the world.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

How might we observe the myriad coexistences of more-than-humans in our cities?
How does nature survive, thrive in and reclaim built environments in the urban landscape of Anthropocene Bangalore? How might we explore local non-human stories, histories and narratives from a non-anthropocentric perspective and subvert storytelling frameworks which focus solely on non-human elements or human elements respectively, to find ways to bring them together?

Maraluva Daari interweaves reinterpreted Hindu mythology, local language and non-human characters by combining the practice-based approaches of field research, conscious observation, design and filmmaking. It strives to serve as a self-reflexive exploration of the role that stories play in addressing contemporary global environmental challenges. It delves into the world-making and world-changing potential of moving-image practices which harness vernacular tales and their reimaginations, ushering in the possibility of decolonising the discourse around the Anthropocene by focusing on regionally relevant dimensions of worldviews and local ecological contexts.