Indian Hill Railways
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway was the very first hill railway in India. For over 100 years its steam trains have ferried passengers on a narrow two foot track through the Himalayas to Darjeeling, home of tea and the Gurkhas.
The villages along the way have grown so close to the railway that trains often pass within feet of homes, shops and cafes, and the local people rely on it for a living.
Sita Chettri is a widow from Nepal who lives in a rented one room wooden house with her five teenage sons. She works as a porter at Darjeeling station.
Life is hard for the family as Sita struggles to earn enough to feed and educate her children by working at the station.
Gerry Troyna is the producer of a series of films for the 大象传媒 on the hill railways of India. He met Matthew Bannister and told him about the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway and the lives of those who depend on it.
Gerry Troyna's three part series Indian Hill Railways will be shown in the UK on 大象传媒2 starting on at 9pm on 26th March. The series has already aired on .
More information about this and the two other films in the series can be found here .