MUMBAI: Having won a British Council Climate Change creative commission in February earlier this year to develop a film and music project in partnership with Earth Day Network, multi-disciplinary artist and musician Soumik Datta will premiere his directorial debut, Songs of the Earth, on November 2 at UN Climate Change Conference COP26 before it releases online.

Created by the London-based musician and Earth Day Network Ambassador, Soumik Datta and animated by Indian illustrators, Sachin Bhatt and Anjali Kamat, Songs of the Earth is an animation film responding to climate change, weaving issues from climate migration, extreme weather to ocean pollution, deforestation and sustainable fashion through original narrative, songs and immersive visuals.

The 24-minutes-long film follows Asha, a young climate refugee from Bengal, as she searches for her missing father through the flood banks of the Sundarbans delta, burning forests and melting polar ice caps. The film is a dedication to the Global South and those who have been tragically displaced by environmental crises and natural disasters.

“Songs of the Earth will be the first short film I’ve written, scored and directed,” says Soumik of the project. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do – use different aspects of my creativity within one project. But I’m most proud of my collaborators Sachin Bhatt and Anjali Kamat who visualised the story from page to screen and helped me manifest my lead character, Asha and the climate emergency that spirals around her,” he adds.

Climate injustice and its unimaginable consequences have inspired two of Soumik’s most recent efforts, Jangal (EP 2019) and ‘Tiger Tiger’ (single released in 2020), but Songs of the Earth is perhaps Soumik’s most ambitious release that reflects on climate and environmental issues.

“At the heart of the film and the album is a question – is our behaviour as a people, sustainable?” asks the contemporary musician. “As consumers, many of us are part of a cycle of buying and discarding – and somehow the photos of polluted oceans, landfill mountains and toxic rivers don't always connect back to us. I’d love for young people to respond to Songs of the Earth and think about how they could make small changes to the environment around them and start valuing this behaviour as a measure of good citizenship, as a badge of humanity,” he adds.

Rooted in conversations with a panel of climate consultants and Earth Day Network associates, the film is a collaboration between artists in the UK and India and will be released at the UN-managed Blue Zone of COP26 on November 2, where the negotiations take place. Featuring a suite of original climate anthems written and composed by Soumik, including ‘Oceans Rising’ and ‘Fields of Hope’, the lyrics carry deep environmental messages that embody conscious activism.

Songs of the Earth – the album that also releases on November 2 – is a sparkling blend of vocals, saxophone, pulsing drums, sarod, cello and meditative samples of nature (leaves, wind and waves). It will release through Bucks Records, bringing together an ensemble cast of musicians, singers and voice actors from UK and India.

The album features a diverse band of musicians including British-Sri Lankan singer and rising star Ashnaa Sasikaran, contemporary cellist Matthew Barley, Indian-Egyptian pianist Rosabella Gregory, British-Tanzanian saxophonist Yasmin Ogilvie and Jake Long on drums. “Unusually, it also features the voices of Asha and Baba beautifully performed by actors, Rakesh Ghosh and Aishani De,” offers Soumik, adding, “Their story pushes the album into a cinematic space. In turn, the music pushes the film into a lyrical space. This overlapping, immersive, sensory experience is where I hope to take my audience.”

The project – aside from the animated film and album – will also be available as an educational resource for schools and youth labs in the shape of an e-book, accessible through Soumik’s Instagram and the new website – www.songsoftheearth.com

The work which will preview at the British Prime Minister’s office at No 10 Downing Street – followed by premieres at Royal Albert Hall, London and COP26 in Glasgow – is produced by award-winning creative company, Soumik Datta Arts in association with Earth Day Network, The Space and Hawkwood Centre.

Songs of the Earth is supported by the British Council’s Creative Commissions programme which are a series of creative commissions exploring climate change through art, science and digital technology.

The eight-track album ‘Songs of the Earth’ also released today; listen here