Sunday, July 24 2005 10:41 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Kolkata: Call it the story of the Indian Railways, or the celebration of the Indian monsoon. Or better still, regard it as a human documentary allowing the viewers a peep into the lives of ordinary mortals in the backdrop of the great Indian Railways.

'Monsoon Railway', a one and half hour celluloid venture on the Indian Railways, brings forth the challenges involved in running one of the world's most complex transports networks.

The movie, directed and produced by Gerry Troyna for BBC, revolves around three principal locales the British-built railway colony of Kharagpur; Kolkata, the former capital of British India; and Rangiya in Assam.

Like a train on the move halting at different stations, the story runs from one of these settings to the other, taking the viewers through flood fury, accidents and track blockades, and the valiant efforts of railwaymen in surmounting the odds.

A salient feature of the documentary is that it touches the lives of all those who make a living out of the railway or work to keep it alive, the coolies, railway employees, the orphans who make the platforms their night shelters.

The movie salutes the faceless over a million railway employees by weaving the narrative around a guard Steve D'cruz from Kharagpur, a Kolkata-based traffic inspector Tapas Bagchi and a gang man from Rangiya Subhas Rai.

These three are the 'real heroes', said Troyna in Kolkata Friday (July 22, 2005) at the first public screening of the film in India.

''It was not my intention to make a technical film. My effort was to make a human film,''he said.

The audience not only find themselves moving in trains, but are also fed nuggets on the lives of the railwaymen, their community service and their light and happy moments.

The monsoon imagery runs through the film, as the scenic beauty along the railway tracks amidst rains is brought to life through breathtaking photography.

''India cannot survive without monsoon rains. India cannot survive without its trains'', a voiceover says.

Troyna describes the documentary as a 'very ambitious project'.

''The logistics involved was very complicated. Three teams of crew stationed at Rangiya, Kharagpur and Kolkata, worked hard for five months to complete the movie. The entire crew was Indian. I was the only foreigner,'' he said.

Troyna said he was in awe of the Indian Railways that run on around 70,000 kms of track and transports 11 million people daily.

''I find it unbelievable how they manage despite so many problems,'' he added.

The movie has already been shown six times on BBC 4 during the last two months and got the third highest rating ever on the channel.

The film shows that life in the Indian Railways is not without its share of humour.

A coolie, who doubles up as a priest, is seen collecting money from his colleagues on one pretext or the other; a ticket less policeman caught red-handed tries to argue his case, but within a short while his aggression gives way to pleas, and that too in vain.