Yellappa of Uravakonda village of Andhra Pradesh is rather famous now. The elderly dyer, who has dedicated his entire life to making natural indigo in the traditional way, has been much photographed and chronicled. He has taught his craft to a new generation, thanks to a Dastkar initiative, and now there’s a film on him.
Says filmmaker Swati Dandekar, “Given that almost every day some craftsman somewhere is giving up on his art, the story of Yellappa was inspiring, important and moving.”
While in his village, she met a community of indigo makers taught by Yellappa. “These people dyeing natural indigo were the only ones practising it today,” says Dandekar. But while she was looking to fund her film, Yellappa passed away. “I decided (the film) should be about what he left behind and his legacy,” says the Bengaluru-based filmmaker, who teaches cinema at Srishti Insitute of Art, Design and Technology.
The test of time
Neeli Raag ( True Blue ) begins with the history of indigo, which is not simply the rise and fall of a natural dye. The tradition of making indigo has survived 4,000 years, witnessing Indo-European trade disputes, British colonialism, the Mahatma Gandhi-led protests against the crop, and ultimately a modern India where the colour is in vogue but with not enough craftsmen to meet the demand. Dandekar celebrates this vast history by highlighting the onerous process and hard work that goes behind the making of this dye. “Even if someone dies, you can’t stop the work, that’s the kind of work it is,” says one of the craftsmen in the documentary.
While Yellappa’s son grudgingly learnt the skill from his father, others in the community picked it up willingly. “It’s a story of struggle but not a grim one,” says Dandekar. “The future of all natural material is difficult, especially indigo. One doesn’t know where it will go, but as of now the art is being practised and there are people doing it with pride and joy.”
Captivating rhythm
The documentary is leisurely, taking the viewer through every step of the process, from green leaves to blue threads. Dandekar creates a captivating audio-visual rhythm, which showcases the meditative experience of the craftsmen, perhaps one reason why they still practise the art. Dandekar says she sought cinematic inspiration from the deep blue colour, the textures and movements, resulting in a series of shots where the focus is on the various transformations.
The warm hues of blue in the film are often juxtaposed against various landscapes. In a Tamil Nadu village, where the filmmaker shot during the monsoon, the greenery blends with indigo but in the drylands of Telangana, the blue pops out of the brown earthy background. “The vat platform is also dull because it’s mud and cow dung, and people are wearing whites, so the blue stands out even more,” says the filmmaker. But as the documentary travels to Kutch, the indigo is lost among other colours we see in the storeroom of traders. “They use a lot of colours, so it was intentional (to show that), because (indigo) is one part of what they do, unlike in Andhra or Tamil Nadu,” she says.
Funded by Films Division, Neeli Raag took two years to make. After premièring at the 20th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star, the 51-year-old filmmaker hopes to travel with the film to other festivals, but also intends on screening it in various cities, showcasing the silent dedication of rural craftsman to urban audiences.
kennith.rosario@thehindu.co.in
