A group of courageous Indian fishermen launch a landmark case against the World Bank Group after it funded a coal‐fired power plant that threatens their way of life.
Synopsis
The Fisherman and the Banker is a modern-day David and Goliath tale, chronicling a fishing community in India’s Gulf of Kutch as they take on the World Bank’s private lending arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), for funding a coal-fired power plant that threatens their way of life. Filmed over a decade, the documentary captures the fishermen’s fight against industrial encroachment and their alliance with US lawyers to file a groundbreaking lawsuit, which reaches the US Supreme Court in 2018. With a poetic and observational lens, the film explores their legal battle and profound bond with the environment, posing a powerful question: can the resilience of a community rewrite the rules of global power—or will the might of corporations and institutions crush their fight for justice?
“Compelling…witnesses an astonishing fight for justice against all odds”
– The Guardian
“Moving and necessary. A David and Goliath story for an age that desperately needs such stories, on our screens and in our hearts, to revive hope that justice is not doomed in the face of finance “
– Yanis Varoufakis
Why this film matters
In an age where the narratives of power are shaped by corporate media and nationalist mythologies, The Fisherman and the Banker insists on telling a different story — one that emerges from the margins.
This is not just an ecological or legal battle. It’s a powerful assertion of agency by a Muslim fishing community long excluded from dominant narratives of development. The film offers a rare and urgent portrayal of dignity, resistance, and environmental stewardship — at a time when India’s minorities are increasingly under threat.
To share this film is to resist erasure. It’s a reminder that stories from the Global South must be heard — that the frontlines of struggle, hope, and transformation often lie far from the spotlight.
Screenings
Upcoming
The Garden Cinema, London – 6pm, 21 June 2025 (Screening and Q+A, more information coming soon)
Past
Portside Review Event, Luna Palace Cinema, Leederville, Perth, Australia – 20 March 2025.
Kolkata People’s Film Festival, Kolkata, India – 20-23 March 2025
Margalla Film Festival, Islamabad, Pakistan – 14 Feb 2025
Keswick Alhambra Cinema, Keswick, UK – 29 Jan 2025
Bertha Dochouse, London, UK – 28 Sep to 8 Oct 2024
The Garden Cinema, London, UK – 14 and 15 Sep 2024
International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala, IDSFKK, Thiruvananthapuram, India – 29 July 2024
Landmark’s E Street Cinema, Washington DC, USA – 16 Apr 2024
Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, Missoula, USA – 17 Feb 2024 (World Premiere)
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