This film in the series Somewhere on Earth from French TV visits Sri Lanka where we follow the stories of three people in the country while getting to know more about the people and culture.
The first segment is about Zeenath, a young woman from a gem-selling family, who decides she needs to understand more about how the gems are found and brought to market. She meets with Ajith, who has the dangerous job of working the mines. First he must drain the mine, then descend into the earth, and search for gems.
The second segment is about Jerome, a Frenchman, now settled in Sri Lanka, where he flies his hot air balloon over the beautiful countryside. His balloon can rise to 1,000m in the air. He has only limited control over the balloon, and must go where the winds decide to take him. We also see him helping the ocean fishermen draw in their catch.
The third segment is about Ven Dhammadassī, who is ordained at Aluvihāra, and is trained in the ancient craft of preparing and writing ola-leaves, which for thousands of years was the main way of passing on the word of the Buddha. Later he accompanies a couple on a pilgrimage to Siripada, where it is believed the Buddha left his footprint.
This is the last of the films in this series I will be showing here, as it is the last one from south and south-east Asia, but there are many more films in this insightful and respectful series. You can watch more here.
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