White Gold

A journey into the lives of her ancestors inspired scriptwriter Jayan Moodley to pen White Gold, a film that tells of the arrival of South Africa's indentured Indian labourers.

Filmed in Tamil, Hindi and English, the movie is set for release in November this year to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Indians in the country.

White Gold tells the story of four young friends who leave India in search of a better life on African soil.

The lead characters are played by first-time actors Vignesh Sankaran, Madhushan Singh, Dean O'Brian Chetty and Rory Booth, all from Durban.

The plot follows their lives after their decision to immigrate, over three generations.

The movie was shot in various locations in Kwa-Zulu-Natal and in a village in India for authenticity.

Moodley, a first-time scriptwriter, says seeking her own Indian roots motivated her to write the script. She also felt the need to leave something behind for the generations of Indians to come.

"I just felt that we had nothing concrete to show what really happened," said Moodley.

In 2007, Moodley traced her ancestors to a village in India's Tamil Nadu.

"I wanted to know where my grandfather came from and I just needed to know more and more. After that, I realised I wanted to leave something behind so that the youth can know everything we had to overcome to get to where we are today," she said.

The film is a joint venture between Moodley's African Lotus Productions and executive producer Dinesh Naidoo's Serendipity Productions.

Naidoo said it was easy for him to join a crew who were putting together something that held so much meaning to Indians.

"It is so important to know where we came from to know where we are going and I feel White Gold will accomplish that."

Moodley explained that the film's title held many meanings.

"White Gold means the sugar cane that our forefathers harvested. It also stands for white lies because the families were promised gold when they came to South Africa but, instead, they became slaves of the white man."

The mother of two from Durban said not many people were aware of the promise of gold.

"I even asked my family in India, "but why would they leave everything they knew to come to a new country?" And they told me, all those people were promised gold. They thought they were leaving for a better life," said Moodley.

On Monday, Ushaka Marine World's Phantom ship was the location used to depict the harrowing journey Indians embarked on in 1860.

In response to a call from the producers for extras, hundreds of people dressed in saris and dhotis turned up at the set. Naidoo said they were overwhelmed by the response from the Indian community.

"It was a Monday, a work day and still a little over 200 people came here to be a part of the film and help us complete this dream," he enthused.

Among the volunteers was Chatsworth father Ravi Pillay who brought along his 14-year-old son, Adley.

Pillay said he felt it was imperative to instil a sense of home and belonging in Adley.

"I wanted him to reflect on our culture and in some small way relive what our forebears went through and feel it for ourselves."

"I also wanted him to see the difference between then and the prosperity we have now. Everything we have today is because of them," addes Pillay.