Khadak (film)

Khadak is a 2006 Belgian/Dutch/German film directed by Peter Brosens and Jessica Hope Woodworth. The film is set in the steppes of Mongolia and takes place during winter in the latter half of the 20th century. It explores the events which concern Bagi, a nomadic herder, during his coming of age and the forced relocation of his people. Bagi has epilepsy and is subject to fits which cause visions and out-of-body experiences. When local officials claim that a disease is killing the livestock his family relies on Bagi and many others are forcibly relocated and made to work at an open pit mine mining coal. Eventually Bagi meets a woman, named Zolzaya, who participates in raids against the freight trains which transport coal away from the facility. As Bagi fights to overcome his epilepsy, together with Zolzaya he leads a group of young people who try to disrupt the mining operations and enliven the despondent populace to return to their nomadic lifestyle.