backwater

Western adventurers have been turning up in Bali since the early 20th Century, when it was seen as an exotic backwater, home to Hindu temples and rice fields.

It had about three houses, and right in the middle there was a sign over a building saying “Casino,” and it had a slot machine in, so it was a real American backwater.

Once in Kerala, the film whizzes through a checklist of things a layperson might associate with the tourist-favourite state - its famous backwaters, the ubiquitous coconut trees, toddy, elephants, and Onam, its most popular festival.

The exact coordinates of this backwater are a bit hazy, but Storyteller 2 helpfully pinpoints the locale as “a place where being from somewhere is who you are.”

This process is known as pyrolysis and takes place in facilities akin to homemade pressure cookers, often in rural backwaters.