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In 2019, I spent five months in the Nilgiri Biopshere Reserve in Southern India with the organisation Keystone Foundation. With a background in visual storytelling, I was tasked with producing a documentary short film on the Forest Rights Act.

The Forest Rights Act was adopted to recognise indigenous communities' rights to their ancestral lands. While intentions are good, the law fails to address a key challenge. Namely that these communities often do not view land through the lens of ownership. Nor do they necessarily engage with the bureaucratic and legal frameworks created by the majority society.

The the most impactful way to convey information about the legislation was through the voices of the indigenous tribes themselves. As outsiders, it was also critical to position the community at the center of the film's narrative. We wanted to move away from a narration style recurrently found in stories covering indigenous people. A style that uses an all-knowing voice to dictate the scenes. Or, one that adopts a voyeuristic approach, exoticizing communities and striping them of agency.

The film was crafted based on interviews with community members from different tribes. Their perspectives formed the backbone of a three-chapter story arc: the first exploring their deep connection to the forest, the second focusing on the Forest Rights Act and its implications, and the third highlighting their resilience in the ongoing fight for land rights.

Featuring influential community members helped to amplify reach and engagement when the film was launched in 2021.