The Human Animal

Hold your breath,” says the narrator,“if you want to join the diver on his journey.” As a dutiful viewer,you puff out your cheeks and stop breathing,watching the Pacific diver jump into the blue ocean. He’s in pursuit of his dinner — a fat,juicy fish — and is armed only with a crude,wooden spear. He’s only halfway through his long dive,when your breath bursts out and you take in a large gulp of oxygen. But for this diver,it’s only the beginning. Incredibly,he goes on to stalk his prey,taking long strides on the ocean bed. It’s only after he’s got the fish wiggling at the end of his spear,that he swims back to the surface. This entire hunt took two and a half minutes; much longer than any of us are capable of holding our breaths. The diver can actually do five minutes,but as the narrator says,he’s not a show off.

It’s incredible stories like these that pepper the narrative of Human Planet,BBC and Discovery’s gargantuan effort to document human life on earth. So there is the tale of the Afars,who build rocky igloos above volcanic steam vents to collect water,the Dorobo hunters,who steal fresh kill from lions in order to survive. The approach is unique in a time when any discussion of human beings and the natural world,veers off into the ‘Us Vs Them’ territory. For instance,documentaries such as An Inconvenient Truth and Home chose to show how human actions impact the world. Then there were documentaries such as The Ascent of Man and Civilisation that narrated how human civilisations rose and conquered the odds — building great walls on inhospitable terrain and raising pyramids in desert sands. It’s rarely that a documentary questions how human beings adapt to their environment. How does a tribe of people live in the middle of the ocean,far from land? How does another tribe manage to survive in the midst of searing temperatures and bubbling volcanoes? These are not stories of how humans established their overlordship on nature; it’s about how many human beings continue to live in tandem with nature,bowing to its whims and moods,and making adjustments.

The documentary series is in eight parts,as has been widely publicised. It took four years to produce,with over 2,000 days on the field,using 71 cameramen and was filmed across 204 locations in 62 countries. Those are some vast numbers and the scale of the production is clear in the final documentary. The show has only just begun airing in India on BBC Entertainment,every Wednesday at 8 pm,but made waves abroad earlier. Deepak Shourie,Director BBC Worldwide Channels,South Asia,says,“In the United Kingdom,it attracted 6.3 million viewers on its

debut,with an average audience of 5.3 million over the series.” Series producer,Dale Templar,explains the documentary’s on-location blog and the impact it had: “Many people,even those who don’t normally enjoy natural history,have become hooked on humans.”

The series is especially important at a time of rapid globalisation. As Templar explains,“The series is a spectacular snapshot of the diverse human world we live in. But the world is changing fast,very fast. It’s becoming increasingly hermogenised. Even now one city looks much like the next — same Starbucks,same McDonald’s.

Human Planet filmed with people who still directly depend on the natural world for their survival,but their wisdom and customs may soon disappear.” Human Planet researcher,Jane Atkins,writes on the blog,“In a time when stories about endangered wildlife regularly hit the headlines,few people seem to notice that incredible human cultures are being lost.”

Of course,given the number of nature documentaries that have been produced over the years,some of the stories feel repetitive. We’ve heard time and again of the people in Brazil who’ve formed a partnership with dolphins to catch fish. We’ve also heard of working elephants and the intuitive understanding they share with their mahouts. Also,the much-vaunted background score by Nitin Sawhney fails to make an impact — although the narration by actor John Hurt is splendid. But these are minor quibbles: Human Planet still remains fascinating to watch.