Plot Summary

Holy (un)Holy River follows the world's most revered and reviled river, the great Ganges River of India. The film's directors, Jake Norton and Pete McBride, followed the river source-to-sea in 2013, documenting its intense beauty and struggles. From its pristine headwaters on the Gangotri Glacier in the high Himalaya Mountains to the fetid, dead trickle in the north Indian heartland to its complex meeting with the sea at the Bay of Bengal, Holy (un)Holy River shows the complexities and dichotomies of this river and watershed with is at once the lifeblood of 500 million people, the spiritual inspiration for a billion Hindus, and one of the most troubled and threatened rivers in the world. The river's story is told through haunting imagery, contemplative scenes, expert interviews, and a journey of some 1,600 miles.