Fürer-Haimendorf's Apa Tani films

Presented below are edited film clips from Professor Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf field trip to the Apa Tani Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, north eastern India. From 1912 to 1944, no exploratory expedition had entered the Subansiri region of the North-East Frontier regions, until Haimendorf, as Special Officer in Subansiri, visited a number of the villages in 1944 and 1945. Haimendorf focussed his ethnographic attentions on the Apa Tani people, who are documented in the footage below. His excellent book The Apa Tanis and their Neighbours (Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1962) describes his field trip in detail and describes the culture of the peoples of this little-known area.

Please be advised that these film clips are large files and suitable primarily for users with broadband connections. While we have set the default on the QuickTime clips to partial download and fast start, we do not recommend viewing them on dial-up modem connections (56k and below).

The film clips available here are in QuickTime format. If you do not have QuickTime, click here to download it from Apple.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Rope-swinging in Hang village during
the celebrations of the Mloko festival.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Erecting a rope swing in Hang,
an Apa Tani village.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Village discussions and games
in Haja village and beyond.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Apa Tani bleeding tubes.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

A Kalinga supply plane landing and
being unloaded by Apa Tani villagers.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Betty Haimendorf,
Christoph's wife and companion.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Village life in Hang and Haja.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Agricultural cycles in
Apa Tani villages.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Sacrifice: Mithan, chickens and pigs.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Apa Tani shamans and their rituals.


© Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf

Expedition and house burning.