Abstract:

The child's voice of nine–year–old Punam Tamang transports us to the Nepal city of Bhaktapur. There we are presented with a stark description of the hard life of this young girl and the dismal social conditions in which she lives. Punam's mother died when she was only five. She was left with her father, her newborn sister Rabina and her two–year–old brother Krishna. The Tamang children see little of their father because he works from sunrise to sundown in a rice factory, and so during the daytime Punam assumes the roles of head of the family, caregiver and homemaker. The film also takes us into the world of Punam's friends whose families do not make enough money to afford the school fee. Instead of studying, these children have to work in a stone quarry or brick–making factory to help their families get by. The film also takes a peek into the poor five–grade school that represents Punam's symbol of hope.