Documentary screening at the Alliance française :
« Bittersweet waters »

In the framework of the “Thursdays at the Alliance” programmes, the Director of the of the Alliance française of Pondicherry, Mr. Michel Houdayer, gave a free hand to the IFP for the screening of a documentary (DVD) “Bittersweet waters” produced by the Institute and made by Nathanaël Coste and Nicolas Ploumpidis (trainees of Masters Degree level) in the framework of the “Social Management of Water” project of the IFP.

This screening was meant to increase public awareness to the growing shortage and to the unequal distribution of water resources in South India.

Front row, from left to right : Olivia Aubriot ; K. Anupama ; Joëlle Rayet ; Jean-Pierre Muller

Dr. Jean-Pierre Muller, Director of the French Institute of Pondicherry, first made an overall presentation of the research themes explored by the Institute before the screening of the documentary. The English and French versions of the documentary were both screened simultaneously in separate halls. A debate with the public then followed, led by two researchers at the IFP and co-authors of the documentary, Mrs. Olivia Aubriot and K. Anupama, around themes invoked in the documentary. The event was held in a jam-packed auditorium of the Alliance française, with a public much sensitive to ecological problems, of which students from the French Lycée along with their teachers.

The idea of a free hand given to the IFP was praised by all the attending invitees, of which Dr. Nallam, President of the Alliance française and Mrs. Joëlle Rayet, Consul General of France in Pondicherry and Chennai, and holds promises for fruitful collaborations in the future.

The making of this DVD testifies to the commitment of the IFP in “popularizing” its research works concerning, among others, the sustainable management of biodiversity (water, forests…) and preservation of the cultural heritage.

About the DVD

This trilingual documentary (French, English and Tamil ; 53 minutes) written and directed by Nathanaël Coste, Nicolas Ploumpidis with co-authors K. Anupama, O. Aubriot and Y. Gunnell, deals with the issues of water management in South India, a subject of underlying anxiety in towns as well as in the countryside. Through testimonies provided by a broad range of stakeholders from rural India, this documentary shows how the dynamics of water management have evolved over the last few decades and how access to water has brought prosperity but also led to bitter experiences. Water issues act here as a lightning rod for portraying an agrarian society that is undergoing rapid and profound change and finds itself faced with acute ecological, social, economical, cultural and political choices for the future.

Keywords : water management , irrigation,tank, groundwater, Tamil Nadu

Organisers

• Alliance française de Pondichéry
• French Institute of Pondicherry (IFP)

Venue

Auditorium of the Alliance française de Pondichéry

Time

6.30 pm