After 7 decades of passionate herding, Neelkanth Mama’s walk is coming to a cruel halt. Meanwhile in a nearby village, Vajir’s attempt to keep walking his sheep is getting thwarted within his home. “No girl wants to marry a shepherd”, says his youngest son.
Set on the picturesque Deccan plateau in southern India, Herd Walk follows the gritty journey of two Kurba-s (Nomadic shepherds) and their native sheep. As they negotiate through barricaded commons, changing climate and new aspirations, they walk to preserve a timeless universe. “The sheep is our dharma”, says Vajir. This film acts as a provocateur and asks us, what is life without dharma (purpose)?
The sheep often has been accused of walking blindly (Bheḍ Chāl or Herd Walk) and the shepherd of unimaginative wandering. But as the film unravels, they just may be keeping alive the last connection between ‘civil and wild’.
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