‘Life in the Countryside’: Artūras and Šarūnas – they’ve galvanised the whole community (VIDEO)

Artūras Vakarinas and Šarūnas Radvinauskas, farmers from the Vilkaviškis district, also known as the crew behind the ‘Barškuolė’ tractor , set the entire farming community in motion two years ago.

A week-long journey around Lithuania, dozens of meetings in various districts – not only with farmers – and their impressive participation in the “Tractor Dakar’ and in protest actions – all this brought these men to fame, particularly in the regions.

However, not everyone is likely to know what lies in these men’s hearts. The farmer’s path is a difficult one, with roots stretching back to their parents’ experiences. The hardships that afflict not only their families, but the whole of rural Lithuania. This is what Artūras and Šarūnas face every day.

Yet whatever may happen, neither man intends to leave the Vilkaviškis district. Quite the opposite. For them, the countryside is, first and foremost, a bird alighting, the morning mist and a space unbounded by any walls.

“Dream on. Because dreams come true, and thoughts take shape,  Artūras tells his future grandchildren.   Don’t forget where your roots lie. I want them to sit down and understand what a village is. Why that tree grows here, why that bird has alighted there, why the grasshopper chirps in the grass… To smell a flower, to make some dandelion wine. To get a bit tipsy on that dandelion wine.”

Šarūnas says he isn’t surprised by the disappearing farmsteads in the Lithuanian countryside.

“There are no people. That’s why those farmsteads are disappearing (...) Perhaps we ourselves have destroyed that village. People used to blame the authorities for the village’s disappearance. Perhaps it’s just the way things are these days. And the way we’ve changed. Just as a fish seeks deeper waters, so a person seeks a better life“, said Š. Radvinauskas.

Watch the episode about Artūras and Šarūnas in this instalment of "“Village Life” episode. Subscribe to the “Agrobitė play” channel to find out more about these rural trailblazers. Perhaps they live right near you.

This documentary report was produced with partial funding from the Media Support Fund.