In knots and crosses.

Dundee is known for jam, journalism and jute. For a better understanding of the jute industry, which has almost disappeared from Dundee, Hopscotch Films crew was in India. John Archer speaks to Mathures Paul The old jute mills that once dotted Calcutta are fast disappearing, only to be replaced by concrete jungles. The importance of the raw material, needless to say, will be understood not before its too late. Glasgow-based production company Hopscotch Films set out to make a documentary on a subject that binds Dundee to Calcutta. John Archer was in Calcutta with his large team to film Brian Coxs Jute Journey, a subject close to the heart of actor Brian Cox. John Archer of Hopscotch Films speaks to The Statesman.

What prompted Hopscotch Films to take on a documentary on jute trade? In Scotland, Dundee is renowned as being the city of the three Js ~ jam, jute and journalism. This is such an old cliche that we will not be mentioning it in our documentary! And sadly it is also out of date. Dundee is the home to some of Britains most famous comics ~ The Dandy and The Beano ~ but although the jam and marmalade manufacturing business continues, jute has disappeared. Dundee was the first place to discover how to break down jute for processing: it was the …