September premiere for 'Mango Girls' in US

"Mango Girls", a documentary showcasing a one-of-its-kind tradition of planting fruit trees, including mango, to celebrate the birth of a girl child in Bihar's Dharhara village, will be premiered in New Hampshire, US, next month.

"Mango Girls" has been co-produced by an Indian named Kunal Sharma and Robert Carr, 85, an American filmmaker.

Sharma, who belongs to Bihar and shifted base to Mumbai, said: "'Mango Girls' is a 48-minute documentary and it will be premiered in New Hampshire in the US in September."

The film has already made headlines in China, Germany, Britain and the US.

"The film attracted attention for its focus on a local initiative by villagers to fight against female infanticide, dowry and global warming," he said.

Dharhara, 230 km east from Patna in Bhagalpur district, caught the attention of people a few years ago for planting at least 10 trees on the birth of every girl child and investing money earned from the sale of the fruits into their education and marriage.

Sharma said that after its premiere, the documentary will be screened at different international film festivals too.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar too appreciated "Mango Girls".

"He watched it at its first screening here Saturday and was impressed by the film," he said.

"Nitish Kumar praised us for our small effort to take Dharhara village around the world through the documentary," he added.

It took three years to complete the film, which traces the origin of the tradition and its modern-day implications.

"It took more time as we shot a Dharhara girl's wedding. By tradition, she is first made to marry a mango tree, then her husband," said Sharma.

In 2010, Nitish Kumar came to know about the initiative, which symbolises the empowerment of women and the protection of the environment in a unique way.

The chief minister lauded the village and said it is a role model for other villages in Bihar and also in other states.

Kumar also said that the novel initiative served the twin purpose of environment conservation and promotion of gender equality.