Thin Ice

This dynamic story about tolerance and one's own strength begins as of the moment when Dolkar, a young Buddhist student in Ladakh, north India, decides that she wants to play ice hockey. She persuades her friends to come training and builds an ice rink. She also convinces the local organisation that even a women's team can be entered in a national competition that had only been for men up to that point. The audience witnesses a pulsating sports tournament full of joy and revelry. They enter a game that not only erases gender divisions, but also wipes out religious differences and breaks many taboos. By way of a seemingly marginal theme, this documentary captures the entire atmosphere of the mountainous Himalayan region. The film is an optimistic example of how even the peculiar wish of one girl can break down prejudices. Nevertheless, at the same time it is also proof of how it need not be a problem to unite completely different religious groups and to overturn rivalries in a peaceful cup tournament. The women's match is also fascinating in the way its energy and amateurism is so different from the clash of trained professionals that you see in the Western world.