KOKOLI – fish out of water is a film in Odia language based on climate change, sea level rise and displacement of a fishing community, which has been widely acclaimed in various film festivals. It is famously said that when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. However, in Kokoli, it seems as if nature’s fury is in a bid to separate two lovers. Kokoli recounts the love story of the protagonist by the titular name and her fisherman lover in Nalia Sai slum. The story has a backdrop of global sea level rise and captures the critical issue of global climate change. It depicts the emotional upheavals of fishermen as they prepare to abandon their slum in the face of imminent sea level rise. The fishermen who have developed deep attachment with the slum go through an array of emotions like fear, anger, frustration as they prepare to leave their slum. While some others turn to Lord Jagannath for their rescue. Kokoli is a story of love in the times of global crisis, but can love be stopped by the tempest of mother nature? Will love be victorious in dodging the onslaught of fierce global climate change? What can be more devastating? A displaced community or a broken heart? Kokoli sets out to address one of the most important questions about climate change with a touch of love story that is both poignant and reinvigorating at the same time.
