Children of Tibet: The Exile Generation

A film by Melinda Wearne and Luke Hardiman

Each year hundreds of Tibetan children risk their lives fleeing Tibet in search of a freer life and an education in India. The Tibetan Government has established schools for young refugees throughout India to provide them with a chance to learn about their own culture and religion and to be educated in their own language. Children of Tibet tells the remarkable story of three of these determined children who make the perilous journey across the Himalayas to India. Told in their own words, the children journey in the care of guides who take them by foot in the winter, leaving their families behind. Many others who went before them died in snowstorms in the mountains; others lost toes or feet to frostbite.

Upon arriving in India not everything is as easy as the children expected. They do not all fit into the carefully organized school system. The film follows their lives as they prepare to leave the refugee center in Dharamsala and enter the school system.

52 min. Video or DVD. Sale $ 295. Video rental $85

Highly Recommended.Through interviews, location footage, and maps, this documentary portrays the struggles of Tibetans to retain their culture through education. The dialog is in Tibetan and English with white English subtitles when necessary. The picture and sound quality is good and the maps are helpful additions. This documentary provides insight into the minds of those who wish to achieve better things for their children through an education that respects their language and cultural identity. Highly recommended for academic libraries collecting in areas including Asian studies and refugee or minority education." Jessica Schomberg, Minnesota State Universityfor EMRO

Best Debut Film, International Documentary Section, Mumbai International Film Festival, 2004