A sensorial stunner that transcends space and time, Manakamana is a ride that showcases the awesome grandeur of nature and the contradictions of contemporary Nepalese life. Via cable car, the film takes us up and down one of the vast valleys of Trisuli in the Gorkha district of Nepal, where the famous Manakamana Temple attracts pilgrims and tourists from the world over. These rides unfold in real-time, revealing a subtle interplay among passengers and landscape. We get to know these cable-car commuters — whose charmingly awkward and poignant encounters further enliven the breathtaking airborne journey. In Nepali with English subtitles and English.
Co-directed by Stephanie Spray and Pacho Velez. Produced by Harvard University’s Sensory Ethnography Lab.