GENESIS

France | India | Belgium | Switzerland | 1986 | 105 Minutes | Hindi | 35 mm | 2940 m | 1:1,85 | Eastmancolor

A film from Mrinal Sen

The poor and meek are miserable, for they shall not inherit the earth.

In search of a new place to live, a farmer and a weaver settle in an abandoned village, on the remnants of a former community. They begin with the reconstruction and are successful thanks to a well. They exchange their products with the goods of a travelling trader.

A woman unexpectedly appears and becomes a part of their lives. Together they cultivate the land and protest against the exploitation they experience at the hands of the trader. But competition and jealously flares up between the farmer and the weaver, erupting as the woman becomes pregnant. She warns them both that they will never overcome external obstacles and enemies if they cannot master their inner demons. In desperation, she moves on in search of a peaceful community.

When the farmer and the weaver finally unite in defence against the greed of the trader it is too late… They perish. The cycle of passing and becoming begins again.

 

Cast & Crew