The Marma are a minority indigenous people living in the Hill Tracts of the Bangladesh/Myanmar border. To Be A Marma (15 mins) follows four members of the community - a princess, the king, a monk and a pop star - as they reflect on what it means to be Marma. Ruled over by an increasingly symbolic tribal monarchy, as well as the Bangladeshi state, they are striving to protect their identity, culture and land in the face of mass migration into their ancestral lands from the rest of Bangladesh.
The film was made in close collaboration with Farhana Hoque (UCL PhD, 2020) and her Marma friends and colleagues.
WINNER of the Inspiration AHRC Research in Film Awards 2020.
Director / Camera: Ed Owles
Producer / Anthropologist: Farhana Hoque
Producer: Alison Rooper