‘The Red Suitcase’ travels across Nepal and through time

In “The Red Suitcase” Nepalese director Fidel Devkota calmly, quietly shares a fascinating two-day road trip from the Kathmandu airport to the small village of Beyul nestled in Nepal’s stately mountains. That the landscape dwarfs the pickup truck is fitting for this snapshot of the unnamed driver’s lack of agency in a shattered modern world. 

Events first situate the truck driver sipping tea, smoking a cigarette, questioning by phone his wife about the name of their newborn daughter, waiting for a delivery assignment. He’ll load up what he will regularly refer to as his boxes and, last, the red suitcase of the title. He’ll get gas and head out on the circuitous mountain road, listening to the radio which delivers contemporary music and an enigmatic, prophesying anecdote that doesn’t bode well. Religious, the driver prays at a memorial of mirrors to those who died on the road. In other words, it’s a rather ordinary day for this man.

What follows, however, will defy logic, lodging beyond realistic   explanation. A Kashmir veteran invites the driver to his home, offers drink and cold, leftover momos, and describes himself as ill-fated, with no present or future. As they share stories, the driver describes a tragedy, January 17, 2003, that drove him to flee his village. Maoists dragged his schoolteacher from the room, tortured, and killed him. The driver accuses the government of responsibility for the deaths of “all these young people,” and the host adds that “scumbag politicians are not going to change.” Interjected into this encounter, in deep fog, a man described in press notes as a migrant worker rolls a red suitcase uphill. Conscientious to the end, the next day the driver will arrive at Dhan Bahadur’s house to deliver his box.

The poetic, elusive nature of this very simple story transcends these details. To clarify, writer/director Devkota explains that the catalyst for this film is that Nepalese youth “live with growing political and economic uncertainty.” He adds that he intends to highlight “how ‘cheap’ and ‘expendable’ the lives of migrant workers are,” this film a tribute to the world’s millions of migrant workers.” In this endeavor, Devkota interweaves fables, myths, and allegories in “surreal landscapes to communicate melancholy.” Devkota effectively delivers a uniquely mesmerizing, haunting tale with minimal dialogue but maximum impact. In Nepalese with English subtitles, “The Red Suitcase” screens at Webster University’s Winifred Moore auditorium Thursday, October 17; Friday, October 18; and Sunday, October 20, at 7:00 each of those evenings. For more information, you may visit the film series website.