<p>Bengaluru: The Consulate General of Italy in Bengaluru has produced a documentary titled <em>The India They Saw</em>, chronicling the journeys of Venetian explorers Marco Polo and Niccolò De’ Conti in India.</p>.<p>Directed by Ganesh Shankar Raj, it marks Consul General Alfonso Tagliaferri’s final project in India.</p>.<p>The idea took shape when a politician remarked that most European tourists were unaware of Hampi and India’s other historic archaeological sites.</p>.Historic Hampi Bazaar finds mention in NCERT textbook.<p>"Hampi usually does not come to mind when we think of India. We wanted to explore a connection between India and Italy and discovered Niccolò De’ Conti’s visit to the Vijayanagar Empire,” said Tagliaferri.</p>.<p>Produced on a budget of Rs 30 lakh within a three-month schedule, the film draws from the journals of Marco Polo and De’ Conti. It captures Holi celebrations in Hampi, portrays India’s tradition of communal harmony, and highlights a past era where dark skin was considered beautiful, with people applying oil to fair skin to appear darker.</p>.<p>AI-generated recreations bring historical moments to life.</p>.<p>"One fascinating link we found was that both Telugu and Italian are vowel-ending languages, which is why Telugu is called the Italian of the East,” Tagliaferri noted.</p>.<p>The team now plans to pitch the film to airlines operating on India–Italy routes.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: The Consulate General of Italy in Bengaluru has produced a documentary titled <em>The India They Saw</em>, chronicling the journeys of Venetian explorers Marco Polo and Niccolò De’ Conti in India.</p>.<p>Directed by Ganesh Shankar Raj, it marks Consul General Alfonso Tagliaferri’s final project in India.</p>.<p>The idea took shape when a politician remarked that most European tourists were unaware of Hampi and India’s other historic archaeological sites.</p>.Historic Hampi Bazaar finds mention in NCERT textbook.<p>"Hampi usually does not come to mind when we think of India. We wanted to explore a connection between India and Italy and discovered Niccolò De’ Conti’s visit to the Vijayanagar Empire,” said Tagliaferri.</p>.<p>Produced on a budget of Rs 30 lakh within a three-month schedule, the film draws from the journals of Marco Polo and De’ Conti. It captures Holi celebrations in Hampi, portrays India’s tradition of communal harmony, and highlights a past era where dark skin was considered beautiful, with people applying oil to fair skin to appear darker.</p>.<p>AI-generated recreations bring historical moments to life.</p>.<p>"One fascinating link we found was that both Telugu and Italian are vowel-ending languages, which is why Telugu is called the Italian of the East,” Tagliaferri noted.</p>.<p>The team now plans to pitch the film to airlines operating on India–Italy routes.</p>
