On Saturday August 19th, we screene Part 1 of Olivier Barot’s documentary trilogy, Sri Aurobindo & The Earth’s Future: From Darkness to Light.
The screening and discussion are in Zoom format and will be emailed to all registrants within 72 hours of the event.
The entire event, including Olivier’s introduction to the film, will be posted on our Auroville Live YouTube channel in the next few weeks.
DONATE BELOW TO SUPPORT THE PRODUCTION OF EPISODES 2 & 3 OF THE SRI AUROBINDO TRILOGY
Olivier Barot’s film is conceived as the first of a three part documentary series on Sri Aurobindo. Olivier follows Sri Aurobindo, known to his family and friends as ‘Ara’ from his early childhood in Kolkata, through his years in England, his return to India, and finally, his arrival in Pondicherry. We are given a glimpse of Sri Aurobindo’s family history, his parents, his education, the development of his philosophy and finally, we witness the creation of Sri Aurobindo’s yoga.
We follow his life in the industrial town of Manchester, where he was placed by his father at age 7, at the home of an English vicar. Ara was fully removed from Indian culture, with the expectation that he would absorb English faith and culture, elements seen as necessary in turn of the century India. Olivier’s meticulous research reveals little known details in Sri Aurobindo’s life, as we follow his education and development in Manchester, historic details about his study years at King’s college at Cambridge, and the formation of his revolutionary ideals, from his college years to their mature form in India.
We are shown images of his arrival in India, after which we follow Aravind as he finds his way as a newspaper column writer, then and then in service to the Maharajah of Baroda. As we follow the development of his work and his reacquaintance with beloved India, his mystical experiences and his yoga take form.
Olivier sources little known historical images to give us a fascinating and thought-provoking history of Sri Aurobindo as a child and young man. He completes the portrait with historical images of Hindu and European art of the artistic and intellectual currents of the era, which likely informed Sri Aurobindo’s education and concepts. We also see historical photographs and illustrations of the places and people he spent time in, woven together with rich atmospheric music and a detailed narration of the events in Sri Aurobindo’s life.
Olivier Barot is a French born Aurovillian photographer and filmmaker. He arrived in Auroville In 1988, and formally settled down in 1991.
Olivier first found Sri Aurobindo’s writing and Mother’s Agenda in France, while in his 20’s. While searching for a spiritual community in France, he also learned about the existence of Auroville.
He traveled to India, and reaching Auroville felt an immediate connection. After 3 years, which included more travels, he decided to settle in Auroville, and eventually began working at Auroville Press. Throughout his travels, Olivier photographed people, street scenes and his surroundings, gathering images of India.
In 1999-2000 he collaborated with Christine Devin, his co-worker at Auroville Press, to create the exhibition and slide-show “The Genius of India” showcasing the foundation of Indian culture, celebrating the genius and soul of India. Based on the exhibition and the slide show, Olivier and Christine decided to make a movie. They realized at that point in time that video would bring significantly more exposure to the subject matter they were trying to present.
Christine had experience with a previous slide projection presentation called Sri Aurobindo and his Five Dreams for the Future of Mankind, based largely on Sri Aurobindo’s Independence Day message. These exhibitions and slide-shows were shown in Indian schools, especially in Delhi and Mumbai.
In 2001, Olivier left Auroville Press and began working as a freelancer. It was then that he had the opportunity to create a permanent exhibition about Sri Aurobindo and Mother, “The Advent of a New World,” and had his first idea of creating a movie about their life and action. After further projects, including a movie and an exhibition on Auroville, a photography book for the 50th Anniversary of Auroville, and a retrospective photography exhibition at Bharat Nivas entitled “India, Land of Light,” he began developing the outline for the Sri Aurobindo trilogy with a screenplay, in-depth research, and securing financing for the project.
The first episode took almost 3 years to complete, and initial work will start soon on the second part of the trilogy.