There Are No Heroes or Villains in "Against the Tide"
©sundance institute
PARK CITY, UTAH – JANUARY 20: Quentin Laurent, Sarvnik Kaur, and Koval Bhatia attend the 2023 Sundance Film Festival “Against the Tide” premiere at the Egyptian Theatre on January 20, 2023, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Momodu Mansaray/Getty Images)
By Lucy Spicer
When director Sarvnik Kaur conceived the idea for "Against the Tide," which premiered on January 20 at the Egyptian Theatre, she was in search of some good in the world.
“I figured out very early on that the world was paradoxical,” she said at the documentary’s post-premiere Q&A. “Good, when it takes itself too seriously, becomes evil, and evil can be a turning point for regeneration, for re-creation. And in between these two men — we’re talking about modernity and tradition — there was a conversation between the heart and the mind for me.”
The men she refers to are Rakesh and Ganesh, two fishermen from the Koli community in Bombay. Rakesh uses traditional fishing methods on a small boat, while Ganesh commands a larger, modern vessel equipped with high-tech tools for deep-sea fishing. Despite their surface-level differences, the two are close friends. “There was a love that bound them — love of identity, love of the sea, which went way beyond, way, way, beyond their differences,” Kaur explained.
Both men share a common struggle: their fishing success has dwindled. The waters off Bombay’s coast are heavily polluted and increasingly populated by jellyfish, contributing to the declining fish population. Despite their differing lifestyles, both men are under financial strain — Ganesh from his modern flat in Bombay, and Rakesh from his modest home, which only recently gained running water.
Ganesh considers taking out loans and using more unscrupulous fishing methods, while Rakesh’s mother advises her son to remain humble and pray for a better catch. Both men have growing families to support, and it's not up to us to judge them. “This film has been done with a lot of diligence, with a lot of love, with a lot of honesty, and transparency that there were no good and evil that I was looking for, no heroes and villains that I was trying to portray,” Kaur emphasized during the post-premiere discussion.
Kaur’s vérité approach places the audience in the homes of Rakesh and Ganesh, reminding us that their struggles aren't black and white. “I needed for them to resonate with my voice,” Kaur said. “I needed for them to understand where I was at, because I was not going with some sanctimonious idea of ‘I know how your life is, or better than you know it.’ I went with, ‘Can you show me the way? My creativity is limited, and your lives are infinite. Just let me be there.’”
The extended observation of the two men’s daily lives is what truly brought home the purpose of the project for Kaur. “For the focus of our film, it was always that life is tough, and it’s full of tragedy, and yet it’s a joy. It’s a celebration. And the celebration is hidden in these small, little moments.”