This film is part of Free

Puri

Unguarded images of Europeans and Indians at Puri on the Bay of Bengal

Amateur film 1927 10 mins Silent

Overview

This amateur film captures unguarded images of Europeans and Indians at Puri on the Bay of Bengal. As well as shots of the Magnuses at leisure and playing tourists, there are lively street scenes, images of young boys diving in the bay and a record of preparations for a local festival.

The Magnus Family collection, donated to the BFI National Archive in 1977, consists of three 16mm films of the family's holidays around India and in Europe around 1927. Mr Magnus was part of the considerable British population in India at the time, an amateur filmmaker of no little talent - with a steady hand, a good eye and a genuine interest in local culture. Tejinder Jouhal