shevlin's world

The Aquatic Resort is Kerala's first and only underwater floating resort

Photo of S.K. Hari Arumugam, Managing Director of the Tirupur-based Poppys Group. Photo by Albin Mathew

By Shevlin Sebastian

Linda B, 66, an American artist, has a confession to make. “Whenever I come to India, I cannot sleep properly,” she says. “Somehow, the beds have always been so uncomfortable.”

But, recently, she had spent time in Kerala's one and only underwater 'Aquatic Resort', and had the most peaceful night ever. “I went into a deep sleep,” she says. “The bed was so good. The ambience was peaceful and quiet.”

Linda was accompanied by her son-in-law Jose Joseph, who is a singer, wife Sarah and their four children – two boys and two girls – ranging in age from 8 to 16. “My kids had a great time, going fishing, swimming and cycling,” says Joseph. “And we had plenty of tasty seafood.”

The Aquatic is located in the backwater lagoon of Kumblanghi, a mere 7 kms from Kochi. “There are 10 cottages spread over 30 acres,” says S.K. Hari Arumugam, Managing Director of the Tirupur-based Poppys Group, which runs the resort.

Each cottage has a thatched roof and bamboo railings on the balcony. Inside, on three levels, there is a sitting room, with sofas, and a wall-mounted TV, a balcony and a bedroom, with an attached bathroom, all in an area of 700 sq. ft. But, amazingly, the bedroom is 4 feet below sea level. To reach it, you have to go down several steps. And when you look through the window, you can see the water's surface. “Because of safety regulations, we have not been able to install wall-length windows, as yet,” says Arumugam.

Nevertheless, the guests are happy. “The rooms are amazing,” says the Bangalore-based Dominique Francon. “Every one of them faces the sunset! And there are such beautiful sunsets!”

Each cottage is placed on a square ferro-cement block, with air pockets, which allows it to float on the water. “The cottages go up and down depending on the high and low tide, but, because of the cement base, you will not know it,” says Resort Director Tommy Joseph. “They can also be towed away to different locations. We also have a swimming pool which can also be moved about.”

Not surprisingly, most of the customers are from USA, Australia, South Africa, Russia, Singapore, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka. “We also get many Arabs who come to enjoy the rainy season,” says Arumugam. “For them, the rain is a joyous experience.”

The peak season is from October to March. Most people stay anywhere between one and four days. The tariff ranges from Rs 9,000 to Rs 15,000.

At the resort, guests are encouraged to go fishing. “Most of them catch a lot of fish,” says Rajesh Ravi Nair, resort manager. “And we make dishes like prawn masala and fried pearlspot fish for them.”

Other activities include a one-hour boat ride to see nearby villages. You can explore the countryside on cycles or scooters. “We also take guests to the Chellanam Harbour [10 kms away], where they can go on a boat to see dolphins swimming about,” says Nair. Other places to see include Fort Kochi [of Kochi Biennale fame] and Mattancherry.

The resort also has a one-day package, usually for locals. “If you come in the morning, you can do boating, and swimming, and we provide breakfast, lunch [an exclusive seafood menu], evening tea, and snacks at Rs 2500 per person,” says Nair.

And in order not to harm the environment, the resort has set up a sewage treatment plant. “Nothing is spoiled,” says Arumugam. “The recycled water is used to water the flowers and the lawns.”

(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)

Director Ricky Mishra is making a Hindi film on Bihar's little-known freedom fighter, Kristo Singh

Photos: The film poster; Director Ricky Mishra

By Shevlin Sebastian

One day, a few years ago, music director Ricky Mishra went to the Sinha library in Patna. There he came across a biography of an unknown revolutionary by the name of Kristo (Krishna) Singh. Ricky was amazed to know that Kristo had robbed a train, at Kiul, in South Bihar, in 1940, to get money for the Independence movement. This was similar to the famed Kakori Train Robbery by freedom fighter Chandrasekhar Azad. “Kristo also burnt down seven police stations,” says Ricky. “He became a revolutionary, like Bhagat Singh and Azad.”

An enraged British government summoned the Baluchi regiment in Afghanistan, led by Capt. Khodadad Khan, to help in his capture and announced a cash reward of Rs 25,000 for any information. “Captain Khodadad was a cruel man and tortured Kristo's wife, brother and mother, in order to extract information about his whereabouts,” says Ricky. Kristo was eventually captured and spent 18 months in Munger jail.

While there, he befriended political leaders like Jaya Prakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, and Subhash Chandra Bose. “He was very much influenced by them,” says Ricky.

When asked how he got the name Kristo, Ricky says, “It was the British who shortened Krishna to Kristo. In fact, in all the FIRs (First Information Reports) in the police stations, he was identified as Kristo. That was how the name stuck.”

Meanwhile, Ricky continued to do extensive research. He went to Kristo's native village of Jamui. “The villagers talking glowingly about Kristo [who died, in 1986, at Patna],” says Ricky. He also read newspapers and books, from the Vidhan Sabha library, the Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Public Library, and Gandhi Sangrahalaya. “After doing all this research, I realised that nobody knows about his exploits,” says Ricky.

So, Ricky decided to make a Hindi feature film. He approached producer Amit Kumar, of X Eye Entertainment, who agreed to come on board. The Rs 8 crore film will be shot in locations at Jharkhand, Bihar, Rajasthan and Mumbai. “The cast is being selected,” says Ricky, from Mumbai. “There will be a few Bollywood stars. Shooting will begin very soon.”

Ricky is also busy getting the songs composed. One song is called 'Vande Mataram'. It has been sung by Krishna Beura who became famous for his hit song, 'Maula Mere', from 'Chak De India'. “I feel 'Vande Mataram' will have the same impact as 'Maula Mere',” says Ricky.

Krishna agrees. “This is a special song,” he says. “But it will be played in the background. For me, every song is a new experience. This historical film will be a stand-out.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

Author Ratna Vira returns with her second novel, 'It's not about you', after the first, 'Daughter By Court Order', became a national best-seller

By Shevlin Sebastian

A couple of years ago, Ratna Vira came across a newspaper article about a young American who tried to help a black who was being bullied. Subsequently, the former received a beating and ended up in a coma. “Soon after that I met the head of an Indian educational institution who told me about the rampant bullying in his school,” says Ratna.”

This proved to be the inspiration for Ratna's second novel, 'It's not about you', which is being released in end-May. The novel starts with a brutal beating of single mother Samaira's 16-year-old son Aksh in school and he has to be hospitalised. It prompts Samaira to investigate, and, despite a lack of co-operation from the school, she discovers that bullying does exist, teenagers have a secret life, and, most of the time parents do not know their children at all.

“Samaira gets some inkling about her son's inner life when she comes across Aksh's posts on social media, as well as his Instagram account,” saysRatna.

Even as she agonises over the slow recovery of her son, tuition teacher Mrs. Khanna attacks Samaira. “Aksh did not complete his assignments, covering it up with lame excuses” she says. “He says you want him to follow in his sister's footsteps. That you will not hear of his ambition to play football professionally, and to study in the UWC [United World Colleges] because you want him near you. That you do not see his misery because you are so determined that your children get the right qualifications.”

And just because Samaira is a single working mother, Mrs. Khanna continues to be hostile: “The problem with all you working women is that you have no time for your husband, family, in-laws or even your children. Tell me, when did you last see your own mother and father?”

It is a well-written novel, with a deep emotional resonance, especially for women, because it is written from Samaira's perspective. Ratna has also touched upon life in high-society Delhi, with its volatile mix of politics and money, as well as the bias that women face in a patriarchal society. “And, most of the time, it is other women who inflict the suffering,” the author says.

Ratna had focused on these subjects in her first book, 'Daughter By Court Order'. It became a national bestseller and described a daughter's fight to get her rights, even as she confronts the abuse within families.

Interestingly, in both 'Daughter By Court Order' and 'It's Not about you', Ratna has begun each chapter with a quotation. So, one of the chapters in the second book starts with a quote by the late actor Robin Williams: 'I used to think the worst thing in life is to end up all alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel all alone'.

What is surprising is that Ratna came to writing only in her early forties. “It was only at that age that I felt that I had a story to tell,” says Ratna, who studied at St. Stephen's College, New Delhi, and the London School of Economics. “I still have more stories in me, because I have experienced life, good and bad, with my five senses.”

Finally, on asked to give tips for aspiring authors, the full-time writer says, “Writing is a lonely occupation. So, you have to keep yourself motivated. Reward yourself when you reach a certain word count. Don’t give up. [Best-selling author] JK Rowling got 21 rejections. I often listen to her 2011 Harvard commencement speech to get inspired.”

(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)

Dr. Madhavi Namboodiri talks about the charms of Kuchipudi, while on a recent visit to Kochi

Photos by Ratheesh Sundaram

By Shevlin Sebastian

“An Indian dance form has an emotional catharsis, as compared to western art,” says Kuchipudi dancer Dr. Madhavi Namboodiri. “You can purge your emotions. In real life, I cannot go out on the streets and show love, anger, hate or irritation. Society has taught us to suppress these emotions. About 70 per cent of our ailments occur because of the bottling up of our feelings.”

But dance can counter that. In fact, it has healing attributes. “I have noticed that women look and feel younger once they start practising dance,” says Madhavi. “The body language becomes confident. It influences the way you carry yourself. Your sensuality come to the surface. And there is an upsurge of energy.”

As for Madhavi, to rejuvenate herself, every summer, she, along with her daughters, Chinmayee, 13, and Sreekaree, six-and-a-half, come to Tripunithara, Kochi, to spend a few weeks with her in-laws.

An Andhra Brahmin, and the daughter of famed Telugu actor Chandra Mohan, Madhavi fell in love with a Malayali, Dr. Nambi Namboodiri, when they were classmates at the Venkataramana Ayurveda College at Chennai. They got married in 2000. Both post-graduates, Dr. Nambi and Dr. Madhavi are directors of the Nagarjuna Ayurveda Centre, Kalady.

Madhavi is also a professor at the Sri Sairam Ayurveda Medical College in Tambaram. “But dance is my first love,” says Madhavi. “You might be riding high in your profession, but in your heart, you will miss your art.”

So, after an eight-year hiatus, Madhavi returned to dance under the able guidance of her Guru, Sathyapriya Ramana, one of the foremost pupils of Padmabhushan Sri Vempati Chinna Sathyam. “Those years away honed my appetite,” she says. “You have to find out what your dreams and passions are, and what occupies your mind and heart.”

Today, she has performed in dance festivals in Chidambaram, Thanjavur, Mamallapuram, Khajuraho, and almost all the Sabhas of Chennai. In end April, she gave a performance at Kochi, during a performance organised by the Sathyanjali Academy of Kuchipudi dance, and was also conferred the 'Natya Pragnya' award. She has also won the Kala Ratna, Rose of Ridwan and Kalamrithavarshini awards from the Baha'i, as well as the Best Performer of theYear, (2014) award conferred by the Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha.

Asked the charms of Kuchipudi, Madhavi says, “There is a lot of grace and naturalness in the facial expressions. In Kuchipudi, we use a lot of lokadharmi (life-oriented gestures) which are used by ordinary people. So, you can connect easily with the audience.”

And she is doing her bit to spread the reach of Kuchipudi. In July, 2010, she set up the Madhura Kala Niketan. There are around 45 students, of which, there are a few males. “Kuchipudi is not part of the devadasi culture,” says Madhavi, a graded artiste of Doordarshan. “In fact, it is a male Brahmin dance. Only four families were taught by [founder] Siddhendra Yogi, five hundred years ago, when he converted a street story-telling art into a classical form and named it after his village of Kuchelapuram. But women became a part of it in the past 50 years.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

Harikrishnan G has put the spotlight on transgenders in his exhibition, ‘Trans – A Transition for life’

Photos: Hariskrishnan G; Sheetal. Pics by Ratheesh Sundaram

By Shevlin Sebastian

Three years ago, magazine photographer Harikrishnan G had gone to Chennai to take photos of a wheelchair-bound doctor by the name of Aishwarya Rao who had done a lot of work to rescue sex workers. One day, Aishwarya took Harikrishnan to a locality where sex workers and transgenders lived. “That was the first time I had been to a place like that,” he says. “The memory stayed with me.”

Recently, while Harikrishnan was recuperating at home, following a surgery, the images of the transgender colony came up in his mind. That was when he got the idea to do an exhibition on them.

Through his media contacts, he got in touch with Sheetal in Thrissur. And after long discussions on the phone and a hour-long meeting, Sheetal and her friends Deepthi and Sonu agreed to do a photo shoot.

The fruit of that work can be seen in the exhibition, ‘Trans – A Transition for life’ at the Durbar Hall, Kochi. Eight photos, 6' x 4' each, have been put up. Printed on archive paper, each costs Rs 75,000. “It is a labour of love,” he says. “I have spent my own money.”

The photos are striking. In one Sheetal (a man who has become a woman) stands, her face turned sideways to the camera, and eyes closed, because coloured powder has been thrown at her. “This is the powder that is used during the Holi festival,” says Harikrishnan. “And it signifies a celebration of transgenders.”

In the next photo, Sheetal is wearing a white frock, with long black hair cascading towards her shoulders, kaajal-rimmed eyes and red lipstick. She is standing behind an open bird cage while paper birds hang in thin strings from the ceiling. Many birds are outside the cage. Is freedom coming for transgenders is the silent question.

The third photo is stunning. This is Deepthi who has posed half-nude, her breasts covered by her two hands. There is a tattoo of a heart being pierced by an arrow over her left breast, a shining gold necklace around her neck and plastic flowers in her hair. But the striking feature is her eyes: it has a mix of defiance and excitement in them. This is Deepthi's first opportunity to express herself as a transgender in a society that has all but made them invisible.

In another heart-warming picture, a male, Sonu, and Deepthi, sit next to each other and hold hands.

Harikrishnan has also taken a photo of Sonu, as a nude man, but, at his hips, he has placed a triangular mirror. When you stand in front of the photo, you end up seeing your own face. “What I wanted to tell the visitors was that we have both male and feminine traits within us,” he says. “So we should learn to accept those who are different from the normal.”

Unfortunately, in Kerala society, there has been a marked lack of acceptance. As a result, transgenders have a difficult time. “They find it hard to rent a house or get a job,” says Harikrishnan. “They get no support from their families. When they walk on the streets, people make pass cruel comments. Because of the difficulties of living here, many have left the state.”

Harikrishnan is hoping that his exhibition will cause a change in the mind-set. “I want to make people aware that transgenders are normal people, just like you and me,” he says.

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

COLUMN: LOCATION DIARY

Actor Shine Tom Chacko talks about his experiences in the films, ‘Itihasa’, 'Annayum Rasoolum', and ‘Chapters’

By Shevlin Sebastian

In the film, 'Itihasa' (2014), actor Shine Tom Chacko, who plays pickpocket Alvy, robs a person, takes the money, and is walking away. Suddenly, the police come up behind him and say, “Hey Alvy.” Immediately Alvy starts running towards a beach. In the distance, he can see a brown-black horse. He runs towards it, climbs up, and kicks the sides, but the horse does not move.

“No matter how much I tried, the horse would not move,” says Shine. “So, the shooting came to a stop.”

Vishnu, the trainer, said that the horse, Lancer, should have a confidence that a person can ride him. “You need to have a proper balance while sitting on a horse,” said Vishnu. “Like the way you keep a balance when you ride a bike.”

So, Vishnu told Shine to bond with the horse. During breaks in the shoot, Shine fed Lancer some food. He also took the horse to the water's edge so that it could feel cool. “A horse communicates with humans through his eyes,” says Shine. “So, I looked at the horse, and said, silently, 'This is a good role for me. Please help me. We need to shoot this scene.'”

At the end of the day, Shine decided to make another attempt. This time, when he sat on the saddle, he kicked hard with both his legs. The horse slowly started moving forward. “That was when I realised that I had been kicking the wrong way earlier,” says Shine. Then Shine kicked again and it began to pick up speed. “But when I kicked a third time, Lancer began to go fast,” says Shine. “I began to feel confident. I realised that the kings of the past felt this same confidence when they rode a horse.”

In the end, director Binu S got a good shot.

Good shots were what cinematographer Rajeev Ravi thought he would get when he selected Shine to play the ruffian Abu in his debut directorial film, 'Annayum Rasoolum' (2013). “I had thick long hair,” says Shine. So the shoot was proceeding smoothly at Kochi. But Shine was finding it difficult to handle this mass of hair, because of the heat.

So, one evening, after the day's shoot was over, he entered an air-conditioned shop and told the barber to trim the hair at the edges. The barber agreed as he gave Shine a head massage. It was so good, that Shine went off the sleep. After a while, when he awoke the actor got a shock. “He had cut all my hair and made it short,” says Shine. “I cannot blame him since he did not know that I was acting in a film, and that it would affect the continuity of the sequences.”

Rajeev got a shock to see Shine the next day. But the director solved the problem by making Shine tie a handkerchief over his head. “Sometimes, gangsters have worn this, as a style statement,” says Shine. “Then, in a couple of scenes, he made me wear a cap. Sometimes, he placed my head at the edge of the frame, so there was no need to show my hair.”

But there was further tension. During one sequence, where Shine is running with a group of ruffians, near a church at Vypeen, he hit his hand on the church wall and broke two of his fingers. Following treatment, his hand was placed in a cast. Thereafter, whenever Shine was in front of the camera, Rajeev instructed him to put his fractured hand behind him, and vice versa when the camera was trained on his back.

From the shoot of 'Annayum Rasoolum', Shine went to the location of ‘Chapters’ at Vagamon where he was playing a ruffian by the name of Choonda. “Director Sunil Ibrahim solved the problem by making another character say that Choonda broke his hand in the bathroom,” says Shine. “Such are the adjustments that take place when shooting goes on.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode)

Paris Mohankumar's exhibition, 'Reverberations', focuses on the widespread environmental degradation in the world

Photo by K. Shijith

By Shevlin Sebastian

Sometime ago, artist Paris Mohankumar entered a house in a tribal area at Wayanad in north Kerala. There, on a bed, he saw a girl with a broken leg. The bone, in fact, was sticking out. When asked why she had not been taken to hospital, he was told that the family had no money. A shocked Mohankumar stepped out of the house.

Later, when he into another house, he saw a wooden piece that was part of an old door. It had scratches, long embedded lines and a couple of holes. He took it home, and painted the figure of a woman on it, in a pastel shade, with the face turned sideways, and the hair held up in a bob. It was titled 'Rebirth'.

This piece is on display at the 'Reverberations – The Unheard Whispers' exhibition, by Mohankumar, at the David Hall gallery, Fort Kochi.

“I want to sell 'Rebirth' and use the money to provide treatment for the girl,” says Mohankumar, 70, who looks like a prophet, with his long and flowing white hair, as well as beard. “Then she will experience a re-birth.”

There are a total of 100 paintings, a mix of acrylic, oils, and watercolours. It comprises his work of the past ten years.

What appears in almost all the paintings are two themes: the presence of women, along with environmental degradation. In the painting, 'Gingee Fort', he has placed a single woman against the backdrop of the Parthenon in Greece, Gingee Fort in Tamil Nadu, the Sacred Heart Basilica in Paris and the Colosseum in Rome. But in front is a large tree, with several bare branches, that goes right across the canvas.

In many other paintings, he has shown wilting grass, leaves and trees. “In Wayanad, where I stay, factories are coming up and spoiling the landscape,” he says. “Most of the politicians are only interesting in making profits.”

Another endangered area is the Niligiri Biosphere Reserve. “I am told that more than 5000 acres are up for sale,” he says. “I am trying to highlight all this through my work.”

As for the presence of women in all the works, Mohankumar says, simply, “I worship them.” And there is a reason for it. His father, Kunjiraman, a Communist, was killed at the French enclave of Mahe in Kerala, when Mohankumar was only two years old. The artist was brought up by his mother and grandmother. “My mother avoided marriage so that she could bring me up, even though she was beautiful and had many suitors,” he says.

The gifted Mohankumar made a mark when he was a teenager through his paintings and sculptures. When a well-known monk, Swami Dayananda Saraswati asked him to do a scultpture of a Hindu god, Mohankumar was flummoxed. Because of his father's Communist leanings, there was no religion in the house. So, he consulted an encylopaedia which belonged to his father and did a bust of Socrates.

But when he displayed it to the monk, his followers were flummoxed.

“Everybody asked the guru, 'Who is this?',” says Mohankumar. “Swamiji replied that this is a 'God of Gods'.”

The impressed Saraswati invited Mohankumar to spend time at his ashram, which was just eight kilometres from his house at Mahe. Mohankumar went there and learnt meditation and yoga. Thereafter, he spent five years as a member of the Aghoris cult at Rishikesh. But all along, he was obsessed with art. And with the Swamiji's help, he went to Paris in 1974, and launched a successful career as an artist.

“My work has been shown in 40 countries,” says Mohankumar, who spent two decades in Europe. His high point was when he was honoured by UNESCO in 1988 as one of the 40 greatest artists in the world. Today, he is on a mission to encourage organic farming among the tribals in Wayanad.

“Mankind should realise it cannot survive, unless we nurture the environment,” says Mohankumar.

(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)

Director Vineeth Sreenivasan talks about his super-duper hit, 'Jacobinte Swargarajyam'

Photo: Vineeth Sreenivasan (right) with cinematographer Jomon T John

By Shevlin Sebastian

In December 2013, scriptwriter-director Vineeth Sreenivasan, 30, received a WhatsApp photo from his friend Gregory Jacob. It was an image of a family get-together and the caption read: ‘Finally’.

The Jacob Zachariah family—husband, wife, three boys and a girl—lived in Dubai. A financial swindle by a business partner made Zachariah lose millions and the family went into a crisis. He went to Liberia to explore work opportunities, while his eldest son, Gregory, along with his mother, tried to clear the debts by running businesses of his own. It took five years for the family to re-unite in Kerala.

“When I looked at the photo I realised how much Gregory had wanted this meeting,” says the director, who knew the back-story. “Because of our busy lives, many of us may not find the time to call or go home. This forgetfulness happens unknowingly. I felt that it would make a good film.”

Released last month, Jacobinte Swargarajyam has become a superhit, with a box office collection of `22 crore and rising. It stars Nivin Pauly, Renji Panicker, Lakshmy Ramakrishnan, Sai Kumar and Sreenath Bhasi. It is a film that a smiling 12 year-old Subin liked, just outside the PVR Cinemas, at the Lulu Mall, Kochi, as well as his 90-year-old grandfather.

Asked how he could make a film that appealed to youngsters and the elderly alike, Vineeth says, “Each character has a unique behaviour. Take Abin Jacob (Bhasi). He is a rebellious 19-year-old, who likes to have a drink and move around with friends. Many teenagers, who saw the film, told me they could relate to Abin.”

Nevertheless, during the shooting in Dubai, Sharjah and Kerala, Vineeth had doubts. “When I am making a film, there is always a battle within myself,” he says. “One part of me says, ‘This is a good film and I have to do it’. But another part says, ‘This may not be entertaining, and not the type of film that people will expect from me’. These doubts persist till the end of the first show when I am able to get the audience reaction.”

So far, the audience response has been mostly positive. His films like Malarvadi Arts Club and Thattathin Marayathu have done well. He also wrote the script for the hit, Oru Vadakkan Selfie.

Meanwhile, during the shoot of Jacobinte Swargarajyam, there were moments of serendipity too. There is a scene where the mother tells Gregory that she had a dream where angels rested on his shoulders. “Both Jomon (T John, cinematographer) and I felt there has to be a magic in the scene, but we not could not find a solution,” says Vineeth.

As they were conversing on the 15th floor of a building in Sharjah, the sun began setting. “Through a gap between two buildings, the sunlight lit up our faces,” he says. “We instantly realised how the scene had to be shot: Sherly facing the camera and Gregory behind her, with the sunlight at the back. And we played ‘Latika’s Theme’ from Slumdog Millionaire, in the background.”

But, rather than Latika, it is Vineeth’s theme, in the film, that is a talking point among the cinema-goers of Kerala.

(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)

COLUMN: LOCATION DIARY

Actor Vinay Forrt talks about his experiences in the films, 'Premam' and 'Shutter'

Photos: Vinay Forrt; as teacher Vimal in Premam

By Shevlin Sebastian

At the location shoot, at UC College, Aluva, for the film, Premam, in January, 2015, director Alphonse Puthren gave a piece of paper to actor Soubin Shahir, on which was written a definition of the Java software. He then asked Soubin to memorise it so that he could teach a class the next day.

However, Soubin pointed at actor Vinay Forrt and told Alphonse, “When people look at Vinay, they will feel that he is a bit educated. On the other hand, I don’t look like a teacher at all. So I will become the PT instructor, while Vinay can play my role.”

And that was how Vinay played Vimal Sir. But when Vinay saw the dialogue, he told Alphonse that the definition of Java was not interesting. Agreeing with the actor, Alphonse allowed Vinay to improvise. When the shoot began, Vinay opened a textbook and said, “Java is simple. It is powerful. It can be robust, too.”

A student suddenly said, “Sir, is it like the Robusta (banana)?” Immediately, all the students started laughing. However, Vinay felt puzzled. Alphonse was supposed to call ‘Cut’, a minute into the shoot, so that George (played by Nivin Pauly) and his friends could barge into the class. “But Alphonse did not say anything,” says Vinay. “In the end, the entire sequence appeared on screen and became one of the most popular scenes.”

So, popular did it become, that when people met Vinay, they would call him Java. “I had done 25 films before Premam,” says Vinay. “But it is this one sequence that established my name. Before that, I played serious and intense roles, and people stayed away when I moved around in public. But after Premam, people found it easy to approach me.”

Again, in Premam, Vinay had a scene where he sang a Tamil song, ‘Ennavale Adii Ennavale’, during the college festival. At the conclusion, he clutched the mike, got an electric shock, and fell to the ground. However, when the shoot was going on, Naresh (name changed), the man who supplied the mike, ran to the stage and shouted, “There is nothing wrong with my mike. It worked perfectly well till yesterday. It is not my fault.”

It took a while to calm Naresh down and tell him that this was part of the script, and Vinay had not suffered an electric shock. Meanwhile, the crew had a big laugh.

Vinay had a completely difference experience during the shoot for Shutter (2012). He played an auto-rickshaw driver, Nanmayil Suran, who locked his friend, businessman Rashid (played by Lal), and a prostitute inside a room, which had a shutter, so that they could experience bliss. Unfortunately, soon after, Nanmayil is picked up by the police and locked up. As a result, he could not open the shutter. When he was released, the next afternoon, he looked disturbed. To show that mood, a scene was set up on a railway bridge, up a steep stone embankment, with water on both sides, in Kozhikode.

“A camera was tied to my body, facing my face,” says Vinay. A red towel was placed around his shoulders. The only other person present was Hari Nair, the director of photography. Vinay started walking beside the track. A train came from behind. It went past with such speed that the towel rose up and enveloped Vinay’s face.

“This turned out to be one of the best scenes in the film,” says Vinay. “People were sitting on the edge of their seats. They were wondering what was going to happen to me. Was I going to commit suicide? When we were shooting the scene, we had no idea of how it would turn out. But now I know that, sometimes, the best scenes happen when we least expect it.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode)

Sreeja Pillai's exhibition has featured different artistic styles, but all have been done on small stones

Photos: Sreeja Pillai by Mithun Vinod; stone paintings

By Shevlin Sebastian

Artist Sreeja Pillai was doing some research for a book on the history of art when she realised that, in ancient times, before the advent of canvas, people did paintings on stone.

“They would capture their day-to-day life on rocks, and on the walls of caves,” she says. “Sometimes, they would use the blood of animals or use different types of mud. The origin of painting is stone. So I decided I would go back to the beginning.”

So Sreeja began collecting stones from the bottom of lakes, ponds and rivers near her home in Thrissur. “It was not easy,” she says. “I also arranged for stones to be sent to me from Kozhikode, as well as Andhra Pradesh and Pondicherry."

The stones varied in size, from 3 1/2 inches to 9” long. They were in different shapes: round, oblong, egg-shaped, and square. But when Sreeja started work, she realised that it would take a long time. “That's because I was doing miniature paintings,” she says.

In her daily life, Sreeja is a drawing teacher at the Harisree Vidyanidhi school. So, she usually started work, on her paintings, only at 9 p.m., after her eleven-year-old son had gone to sleep. And she worked late into the night.

But Sreeja has been following a specific plan. She would take one style each from the twenty-plus states in India. “In Kerala, the most traditional art form has been the mural painting,” she says. “So I have done works in that style.” She has also done Santhal, Assamese, Bhil, Deccani, Kalamkari, Worli Rajasthani, and Gond styles.

“The Gond paintings of Madhya Pradesh usually have animals as their subjects,” says Sreeja.

After she completed 130 paintings, she held an exhibition recently at the Kerala Lalitkala Akademi in Thrissur called 'Luminous-4'.

“The presentation is very important,” says Sreeja. So, the stones have been placed against blue, green, red, saffron and pink cloth on a specially-designed wooden stand. Before each stone is the name of the painting and the state from which it has originated. One section was focused on the faces of members belonging to various tribes. “It was only after doing the paintings that I realised the immensely rich heritage of India,” she says.

Meanwhile, those who saw the exhibition liked it. Says Kochi-based artist PR Unnikrishnan: “Sreeja's work is different, as compared to other artists. She is carrying on a 6000-year-old tradition of stone art. Sreeja has done a lot of research and that is reflected in her works. It is a commendable effort.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

The Kochi-based 'Tree For Life' aims to bring in a culture of growing trees, in a bid to reduce environmental damage

Photo: (From left): Manju Mathew, Rose Paul, Bobby Antony and Sumi Thomas. Pic by Albin Mathew

By Shevlin Sebastian

At the Ted Talks at Vancouver, in February, Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay said, “72 per cent of our country is under forest cover. And all that forest is pristine. That is why we are one of the few remaining global bio-diversity hotspots in the world. Out of 200 countries, we are the only one that is carbon-neutral. Through our Green Bhutan movement, we are planting trees throughout the country.”

In Kochi, two months later, restaurateur Manju Mathew, 40, saw the video on her Whatsapp. It created a jolt within her. Another trigger was an article in 'The New Indian Express' in late April. Reporters measured temperatures in areas where there are trees, as well as no-tree areas and published the results.

“The temperature difference between the two was as high as two degrees,” says Manju. “I started wondering, 'All of us are complaining about the heat, but what are we doing to reduce it? Then I realised that the easiest way is to plant trees, just like the Bhutanese Prime Minister said.”

The final trigger was a news item which showed the number of trees per person globally. While Canada led the way, with 8953 trees per person, the US has 716, China, 102, and India a measly 28. “On the world stage, we were nowhere,” says Manju. “That proved to be the tipping point.”

And thus was born the group, 'Tree For Life'. The core group, apart from Manju, consists of Sumi Thomas, Rose Paul and Bobby Antony.

“Altogether, there are about 45 women, consisting of homemakers, businesswomen, teachers, architects and interior designers,” says Manju. “It is a vibrant and multi-faceted group.”

But the group wanted to do things differently. “Many people get into a tree-planting exercise, for one day, like on World Environment day, and then forget about it,” says Sumi. “But we decided that we would plant a limited number of saplings, but ensure that it was looked after, so that it became a tree. Nurturing is a must.”

So they have got in touch with schools, colleges, and community groups.

One such group is the Giri Nagar Ladies Club. The Tree for Life held a meeting with the club members. In the end, the latter said they were interested. “About 45 saplings have been planted in various backyards,” says Rose.

As for the saplings, they have been sourced from the State Social Forestry department. “They gave us a list of ten saplings that can be used,” says Rose. These included guava, sapota and neem trees.

And when Tree for Life spread the word, through social media and mobile calls, the members got a shock. “In less than two days, there were 300 orders,” says Manju. “I believe this idea has struck a chord among people. Everyone is deeply worried about environmental destruction.” A couple of banks, as well as the Women's Rotary Club Milan have stepped forward to provide sponsorship.

Meanwhile, the Tree for Life will take the assistance of children to plant the saplings. “We want the citizens of tomorrow to know the importance of trees, and understand the need to nurture the environment,” says Manju.

In the second phase, the group has plans to develop urban forests. “If we are given a space, just large enough to park six cars, we will be able to grow several plants andtrees,” says Manju. “That will help bring down the temperature. Birds will get attracted. These areas will serve as hubs where clean air and oxygen are produced. That is the beauty of trees.”

For Manju, and for most members of the group, the tree is a symbol of womanhood. “A tree is like a mother,” says Sumi. “It houses birds and provides shade. The tree is strong, but when there are strong winds or thunderstorms, it will bend and become flexible. Just like a woman.”

And Manju is optimistic that once the message reaches far and wide, this could become a national movement. “I am hoping we will make a difference in the entire country,” she says.

(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)

COLUMN: LOCATION DIARY

Actor Kunjan talks about his first experience before the camera, as well as the film, 'Sambhavam'

Photo of Kunjan by Albin Mathew

By Shevlin Sebastian

In October, 1967, actor Kunjan was leading a quiet life working in an office in Coimbatore. One day, he befriended a man named Shanmugham, who made documentaries, which were screened abroad.

Shanmughan asked him whether he would act in one of his documentaries. Kunjan was hesitant. He had no experience of acting. But Shanmugham said he would be paid Rs 250 for his efforts. “In those days, that was a lot of money,” says Kunjan, at his home in Kochi. “So I agreed.”

The next morning, a Plymouth car came to collect Kunjan from his house. From there, they travelled to Mettupalayam, 33 kms away. The shoot was supposed to take place next to a temple. Shanmugham was waiting patiently.

As soon as Kunjan arrived, he was asked to take off his shirt. Then his hands and legs were tied. Kunjan was made to lie on the ground. Suddenly, a few men brought a number of baskets next to him. When it was opened, Kunjan was shocked.

These contained snakes and they were placed all over his body. Soon, one python enveloped Kunjan so tightly, he was finding it difficult to breathe.

“I was in a state of shock,” says Kunjan. “It was like being in a bed of noodles. There was also a terrible smell.”

A fearful Kunjan told Shanmugham, “Sir, please free me. I don't want the money.” But Shanmugham ignored Kunjan and continued shooting.

When it was over, Kunjan had a splitting headache. After he got the money, he felt very hungry. So he went to a hotel at Coimbatore, and had a plate of chicken biriyani.

While he was doing so, he noticed an eruption on his skin, along the forearm. After a while, the same mark appeared on his other hand.

“I thought it had something to do with my encounter with the snakes,” says Kunjan.

Immediately he consulted with Prakash, a homeopathic doctor. “He told me it was chicken pox,” says Kunjan. “The stress, fear, tension, and body heat had made the pox erupt.”

In the end, Kunjan stayed in bed for 28 days. “Apart from the Rs 250 from Shanmugham, I had to borrow another Rs 250, from a friend, to pay for the treatment,” says Kunjan. “So, finally, I did not gain anything.”

Eventually, Kunjan entered Mollywood, and has acted in 650 films till now.

In 1981, during a break in the shooting of 'Sambhavam', which starred Madhu, Srividya, and Adoor Bhasi, Kunjan finished his dinner at the Hotel International, at Kochi, along with producer Ravi Menon.

When they came out, to go to the Bharat Tourist Hotel, where they were staying, they noticed that it was raining heavily. So, one of Ravi's friend, Sooraj (name changed) offered to take them. While Kunjan sat in front, Ravi was at the back.

On MG Road, near Maharaja's College, a lorry hit the car head-on. “The door was hanging from my arm,” says Kunjan. “There were cuts on my legs and arms. And I was bleeding from my face. Ravi's lip had split open. He had hit the seat in front.”

Kunjan managed to get out of the car. He saw an autorickshaw driver and asked him to take them to the nearest hospital.

But the driver said, “Please allow me to look at you for some time. This is the first time I am seeing a star.”

Says Kunjan, “In those days, people were crazy about actors. It is only now that because there is so much of shooting taking place in Kochi that people have got used to seeing the stars.”

The driver finally took the three of them to the Medical Trust hospital. At the intensive care unit, it was discovered that there were some glass pieces stuck to Kunjan's body. When it was being taken out by the nurse, Kunjan moaned in pain.

When the nurse saw that, she said, with a smile, “Acting in films and acting in the hospital, too.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode)

Peter Cremers, the executive chairman of the Hongkong-based Anglo-Eastern group talks about shipping, and other matters, while on a recent visit to Kochi

Photos: Peter Cremers by Albin Mathew; an oil tanker

By Shevlin Sebastian

On a Friday morning, the staff at the Anglo-Eastern Ship Management Company, at Kochi, are dusting the top of tables, adjusting chairs, and ensuring that everything is spick and span. This is moments before the impending arrival of the Belgian-born Peter Cremers, the executive chairman. He is on his first visit to Kerala.

The Hongkong-based group has 26,000 employees on its rolls and controls a fleet of 600 ships. “Our job is to manage a ship,” says Cremers. “We don't own it, nor the cargo. We provide the technical know-how, as well as the staff. In other words, we are the world's largest ship manager.”

The majority of the staff are Indians, followed by Filipinos, Chinese and Ukrainians. The company has training centres in Delhi and Mumbai, as well as Manila and Odessa. In India, a one-year training is given for engine, deck and electrical officers. Thereafter, they work as a cadet for two years, before they are absorbed into the company.

But Cremers admits it is not easy for people of different nationalities to work together. “It is important to understand and respect each other's cultural backgrounds,” he says. “If you think 20 individuals, on board a ship, with ten nationalities, are all the same, then you are wrong. Part of our business is to understand how a Filipino or an Indian or a Chinese works and thinks. We never forget that we are not employing robots, but human beings.”

And these human beings did go through several life-threatening situations, because of the threat of hijacking by Somali pirates a few years ago. But the threat has disappeared. “The moment we were allowed to put armed guards on board, it has proved to be a deterrent,” says Cremers.

Apart from the dangers from hijacking, accidents do take place on board. “A ship is a relatively hazardous environment,” says Cremers. “Everything is made of steel. You can trip and break a leg. There are heavy weights being moved around all the time. A major accident can also take place, But, having said that, we have the best safety record of any company, with less than 1 per cent of accidents in a year. We are always conducting safety programmes on board. It is one of our major drives.”

Incidentally, some of the vessels which the company handles include oil tankers, container ships, dry bulk carriers, and pipe-laying barges.

Meanwhile, when asked to provide leaderships tips, Cremers says, “I have made sure that I have, around me, very competent people. You cannot do everything yourself. You should also be a good person, a fair boss, and ensure that the company has a singular vision, which has to be transmitted to every employee.”

Asked about his vision, Cremers says, “It is very simple: to be the best in the world. In our industry we want to be at the top. And I believe we are.”

Interestingly, the company has won several Compassionate Employer awards. “We always do right,” says India operations managing director Captain Vinay Singh. “We follow the book. We never cheat anybody. We try to help people. We run an NGO in Kochi, which is helping the local orphanages.”

Adds Maneesh Pradhan, senior general manager, “If any employee is in need, we go beyond the rules. And try to help them, especially, if they have a problem within their families. We provided relief during the Chennai floods by starting a food centre, 24/7.”

Asked about his 24/3 experience in Kerala, Cremers says, “I liked it. Kerala gave me an European feel, because of the churches and the greenery. It has its own character. At some places, I thought, 'Am I in India?'”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

Thanks to the Friends of Tibet, Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, came to Kochi to give a speech on Gandhism. It was a one-hour speech and not a moment of boredom: scintillating and inspiring, to say the least, and a much-needed one during these divisive times. When we were looking for a place to pose, it was he who suggested that we stand on either side of a caricature of the Dalai Lama.

Unlike Gandhiji, he is big-built. In his speech, he recounted how when he went to a school in Ahmedabad, he was introduced to a group of Class 6 students. One girl stood up and said, "Miss, he cannot be Gandiji's great-grandson. I think he is a wrestler."

A big thanks to colleague Ratheesh Sundaram for the snap.

The Aromi Di Italia, at Cherai Beach, with its authentic cuisine, is rapidly gaining in popularity

Photos: Soju Philip, Executive Chef-food production; a lobster dish. Snaps by Albin Mathew

By Shevlin Sebastian

On an April night, IT professional Sarat Chandra, 39, decided to have his meal on the first-floor verandah, of the Aromi Di Italia restaurant, run by Club Mahindra, at Cherai beach [25 kms from Kochi]. “It was a full-moon night,” he says. “From where I was sitting I could see large waves hit the beach. There was a strong breeze blowing, and the sky was filled with stars. The ambience was so beautiful.”

While his children Nishita, 7, and four-year-old son Virat played nearby, Sarat and wife Bharti placed the order for a soup: Patate E Porri Zuppa Con Pollo Rosmarino – thick soup, with leek potato, and roasted rosemary chicken.

A few minutes later, when the soup arrived, Sarat noticed one telling difference. “Unlike, in most restaurants, they did not mix cream with the soup,” he says. “It was original stuff all the way and very tasty.”

Thereafter, he had the Penne Shrimp Alfredo – pasta, with shrimps and white cream sauce. “The shrimps were fresh, and, I was told, it was sourced locally,” he says. “Since we live in Hyderabad, we do not have the opportunity to have fresh sea food.” This was followed by fried chicken fillet served with sautéed zucchini, tomato, red peppers, and potato chips. “The beauty of authentic Italian food is that it is so light on the stomach,” says Sarat. “We enjoyed ourselves.”

Soju Philip, Executive Chef-food production, is not surprised.

“The Italian cuisine is known for its simplicity,” he says. “Every dish has, unlike Indian food, just four or five ingredients – tomatoes, onions, garlic, olives, cheese and herbs like basil and rosemary. But the cornerstone is olive oil. We have selected the cuisine of the southern part of Italy, like Capri, Sardinia, Sicily and Naples, which borders the Mediterranean Sea, because it is regarded as one of the healthiest diets in the world. Nowadays, people are looking for health options.”

One healthy dish is the Pesce Bianco Al Spinaci. This is a fish, roasted with extra virgin oil, along with vegetables, olives, lemon, spinach and topped with pesto – a basil and garlic sauce. It is spare and light, yet with a distinctive flavour.

However, interestingly, nowadays, many of the guests are opting for vegetarian fare. So the Aromi Di Italia offers pasta with vegetables and cheese, or pan-fried aubergine slices layered with Parmesan cheese and tomato sauce.

But the most popular item, among the veggies, is not pasta. Instead, it is a corn meal cake. “We cook powdered corn with butter and milk,” says Soju. “Salt and pepper are added. Then it is placed in a tray so that it can settle down. Later, we cut it into fancy shapes. Thereafter, it is grilled in butter, along with sauce.”

Guests come from Kochi and the nearby towns like Kodungallur. “We also get a lot of Westerners who are keen to try our seafood, like shrimps and prawns,” says manager Shinow Baby.

And they like what they eat. Danish tourist Foogen Oruteft says, “The food was very good. It is a very good idea to have an Italian restaurant at Cherai.” Dr. Jose Ukken from Kodungallur says, “Loved the fish.”

But even in an Italian eating-place, there is a demand for rice. So the staff provides the patrons with an Italian rice called arborio. “It is similar to our Basmati rice,” says Soju. “To the rice, we add chicken stock, cream, milk, and Parmesan cheese. Then it is cooked, till it becomes like a thick porridge. It can be a full meal if you add chicken, vegetables or seafood.”

Meanwhile, Soju, as well as the Chennai-based corporate chef, Dr. P Soundararajan, and his team, are planning to add new items. “We want to make a classy menu that will appeal to everybody,” says Soju, about the six-month old restaurant.

(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)

Madhu S Nair has travelled to numerous countries over the years. He talks about his experiences and upcoming books on Cuba and Japan

Photo by Manu R Mavelil

By Shevlin Sebastian

When Madhu S Nair landed at Bogota, Columbia, in 2002, he felt unsure. He did not know Spanish, nor did the people know English. At a terminus, he wanted to take a bus to go to Bolivar Square and see a statue dedicated to South America's most famous revolutionary Simon Bolivar. But he did not know which bus to take.

A teenager, seeing his plight, spoke to him. Somehow, through sign language, and using the words, 'Simon Bolivar', he told her where he wanted to go. She pointed at a bus, at some distance away. So Madhu walked towards it. And got into the bus. Suddenly, he saw the girl running towards him.

Through her gestures, he realised that he had got into the wrong bus. So, he got down, the girl held his hand, and led him to the correct vehicle.

“I was very moved by her concern,” says Madhu. Later, when he wrote a travelogue about his experiences in Colombia, he dedicated the book to this unknown girl.

The Thiruvananthapuram-based Madhu has been an avid traveller for long. In fact, he has gone to over 50 countries in different parts of Europe, America, Asia and Africa. “Travelling broadens the mind,” he says. “You learn to respect different food habits, cultures, creeds and religions. In short, I have learned to respect the human being.”

Asked to give tips for first-time travellers, Madhu says, “You have to be very alert, especially when you go to a country where you don't know the language. It is better to avoid travelling at night. Whereever you go, you should read up about it, so that you can have a sense of history of the place.”

You also have to be prepared for unexpected experiences. Once when Madhu arrived at the port town of Cartagena, in Colombia, there was not a single room available. In the end, he managed to get a room at a brothel. “You need to be fearless at times,” he says, with a laugh.

All these experiences have been grist to his writing. Thus far, he has written 15 books on his various travels, and a few more are in the pipeline. They include books on Cuba, Japan, Tanzania and Vietnam. He is also credited with having written the first book in Malayalam on computers.

Clearly, Madhu has been a man of many parts. After graduation in Metallurgical Engineering, from Kashmir University, in Srinagar, he went to the USA where he did his masters in Technology of Management from the American University at Washington. Thereafter, he worked as a computer specialist at the Goddard Space Flight Centre, belonging to the National Aeronautics Space Administration. Following that, he spent a few years at the Pentagon as a computer scientist.

His conclusions, from his work experience at the Pentagon, are interesting. “In the first few years, you can move upwards steadily,” says Madhu. “But after you reach a certain level, it becomes difficult. Then you will feel you are not a part of the system. You are always regarded as a foreigner.”

So, it was no surprise that Madhu returned to Thiruvananthapuram in 1990. He started the capital's first computer training institute called Krishna Computers. Today, he is the chairman of the India Hospital Trust as well as the Publisher of India Books.

His experiences at the workplace in the US and Kerala have given Madhu a unique perspective. “In the USA, work is like a religion,” says Madhu. “They are serious and dedicated. And they take their vacations seriously, too. Here, there is an apathy towards work. Kerala does not have a business-friendly environment. In America, they place a lot of emphasis on business, especially small firms. Nevertheless, despite its flaws, I have a deep love for my land.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

COLUMN: LOCATION DIARY

Cinematographer S. Kumar talks about his experiences in the films, Punnaaram Chollicholi', 'Kadathanaadan Ambaadi' and 'Nirnayam'

Photo of S. Kumar by Kaviyoor Santhosh

By Shevlin Sebastian

During the shoot of 'Punnaaram Chollicholi', at the Ambalapuzha temple, director Priyadarshan told cinematographer S. Kumar to take shots of a caprisioned elephant for the song, ‘Arayarayo Kinginiyoarra’ which starred Rahman and Zarina Wahab. So, Kumar told the mahout, Mani (name changed) to make the elephant shake its head.

“Something in the way he did it irritated the elephant,” says Kumar. “The elephant broke the chain, which tied him to the ground, and charged at Mani.” The mahout fled.

When this happened, the assistant mahout, a youngster named Ramesh, managed to get on top of the elephant by climbing from the back. “Mani was running around the perimeter of the temple pond in order to ensure that the attention of the elephant remained on him and not towards the devotees,” says Kumar.

Meanwhile, Ramesh tried his best to control the elephant but the mammal was in a violent state. A couple of hours went past.

During this time, Kumar and the crew looked on in shock. “The temple priest expressed confidence that when the temple opened at 6 p.m., and the bells rang, the elephant will be brought to a halt,” says Kumar.

Just near 6 p.m., the elephant was lured next to the broken chain that remained on the ground. “Somehow, they managed to link this chain with the one on the neck and the moment, they put the lock on it, the temple bells began ringing,” says Kumar. “But the elephant remained very violent. Ramesh could not get down.”

It was only at midnight that they could come up with a solution. They tied a rope above the elephant between two coconut trees. The mahout then grabbed it, with both hands and managed to make his way to the side, reached a tree and got down.

“Thereafter, we left,” says Kumar. “But we heard that a week later, after the elephant had received treatment and had calmed down, Mani was taking him from Alleppey to Thrissur. However, on the way, the elephant gored Mani to death.”

There was another incident regarding an elephant during the shoot of the film, 'Kadathanaadan Ambaadi' (1990) at Mallampuzha in Palakkad district. “It was a fight sequence,” says Kumar. “And we wanted to involve a group of elephants.”

Anoop, a 20 year-old-boy was the second mahout. “Something he did angered the elephant,” says Kumar. “He lifted Anoop by the trunk and hurled him towards a Mercedes Benz car that belonged to the producer Sajan Varghese.”

Anoop crashed through the glass and fell inside. The elephant then gored the bonnet with its tusks and tried to lift the car. Only the rear side went up. Anoop managed to climb to the back seat, opened the door and ran away. “But the car was a total wreck,” says Kumar. “Sajan had to spend a lot of money to repair it.”

In the Telugu film, 'Nirnayam' (1991), a remake of Priyadarshan's film, 'Vandanam', Kumar had a different experience. Tamil actor Charlie was supposed to ride a cycle up the incline of a cart, and go flying through a Bata shoe hoarding.

Usually, to prepare for a shot like this, mattresses and cardboard boxes are placed on the ground, in case the rope, which is tied around the actor’s body, breaks. In this instance, veteran fight master Thyagarajan forgot to arrange it. But he assured Kumar that the rope was brand-new. Nevertheless, Kumar told Charlie that, in case the rope broke, he should be mentally prepared.

It was the right advice. When Charlie rose 15 feet in the air, the rope broke and he fell. But since he was prepared, he was able to roll over and remained unharmed. “There were only a few scratches,” says Kumar.

“Thereafter, I have always told my crew that we should take precautions. Anything can happen at any time.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi talks about his childhood and the state of the country, while on a recent visit to Kochi

Photo by Ratheesh Sundaram

By Shevlin Sebastian

When Tushar Gandhi steps into a hall at the Museum of Kerala History for a lecture on Gandhi, organised by the Friends of Tibet, at Kochi, on a recent Sunday, people swarm towards him.

That is the impact of being the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. What surprises is his size and girth. And he touches upon this, in his speech, when he recounted an experience in a school at Chennai. “When the teacher introduced me, one Class 6 girl stood up and said, ‘Miss, he cannot be Gandhiji’s great-grandson. I think he is a wrestler’.”

The man himself has a touch of humility. “I consider myself a mediocre person,” he says. “I am here only because of the accident of my birth.”

Nevertheless, Tushar does not consider the Gandhi surname a burden. “In fact, it has always been a blessing,” he says. “But it comes with a responsibility. The people have expectations from us. They don’t understand that the greatness of the man [Gandhiji] was because of his individual achievements. It is not hereditary. Nevertheless, I feel privileged by the respect that I have received, even though it is undeserved.”

Even in school, at Mumbai, he was treated differently. “When the history of the freedom movement would be taught, the whole class looked at me, rather than the blackboard,” says Tushar. “It happened with my children, also.”

But there have been embarrassing moments too. During a debate competition, Tushar said, “India became independent on August 15, 1948.” There was a pin-drop silence in the hall. Then a teacher held him by the ear and took him to the Principal. “When the Principal was told about my mistake, he said, ‘Leave the school and don’t come back’,” says Tushar, with a smile.

At Kochi, he talked about many pressing subjects. “We fool ourselves if we think that as a nation we are united,” he says. “We are only united by the map of India. But, in our hearts, we have caste, religious, and gender-based divisions. There is a huge rich-poor divide. The most shocking divide is between citizens who enjoy the rights of being one, and those who don’t.”

The disenfranchised have become an invisible population. “They don’t have water, electricity, food or education,” says Tushar. “We are patting ourselves on the back regarding the achievement of sending the Mangalyaan space probe to Mars, but these are pyrrhic achievements. India is No 1 in the world when it comes to malnutrition deaths. In the last few years there have been a record number of farmer-suicides. These things indicate that, as a nation, we are a failure. Our republic is crumbling.”

As for the rise of right-wing forces globally, Tushar says, “It is a cyclical phenomenon. Today, it seems that liberalism and tolerance are receding, while fanatical and chauvinistic forces are becoming rampant.”

But there is a reason for this. “In certain ways, the liberal ideology has failed its people,” says Tushar. “It has become a lip service, rather than an actual way of life. And that is why the extremist elements are able to impose their ideologies in the minds of the people. But I believe that there will be an ebb because people will get tired of the endemic violence which accompanies their campaigns.”

Finally, regarding his views about Tibet, Tushar says, “Tibet has been at the back of the mind of every freedom-loving person. Today, the message that Bapu sent out from Dandi, that he wanted ‘world sympathy, in the battle of right against might’, is represented by Tibet most emphatically. I believe that, one day, the Tibetan people will triumph against the Chinese and get their freedom.”

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

The German architect Karl Damschen is Kerala's leading conservation architect. But he has another passion: he is spreading the joys of kayaking among the people of Kochi

Photos by Ratheesh Sundaram

By Shevlin Sebastian

From a distance, on the Vembanad lake, near Kochi, on a recent Sunday, German architect Karl Damschen saw that rain had begun to fall. He expected it to hit him at any moment. So, he stopped his kayak, quickly slid into his waterproof jacket, put on a hat with a wide brim, and zipped up the spray deck.

This is a flexible cover, which prevents water from entering the boat through the seating area. The ten kayaking members of the Global Sailing Club (GSC), at Panangad, Kochi, including Damschen's wife, Annelies, did the same.

The group began kayaking again. Soon, the rain hit them with force: thick, heavy drops, with streaks of lightning lighting up the dark sky. “It was so much fun,” says Damschen, 73. “Unlike in Europe, where the rain consists of cold water, this was warm and enjoyable.”

Thereafter, over a day, the team stroked their way to the town of Vaikom, 15 kms away, and returned to Kochi.

For the past two-and-a-half years, ever since the GSC was set up, Damschen has been propagating kayaking. “I have given a six-week training course to those who are interested,” he says. “As for the right technique, most beginners pull the paddle backwards, but in kayaking, you have to push forward, so that you can use the weight of your body. This is the method followed by the Eskimos.”

Thus far, there are 20 regulars. They include businessmen, industrialists, professionals and homemakers. And all of them go kayaking on the weekend. “It is only through kayaking that I could appreciate the beauty of Kerala,” says homemaker Anuja Asher. “We have gone to places where no car can go.”

Kayaking has a lot of benefits. “It is physically taxing, but enables you to keep fit,” says Annelies, 73. “And during a trip, you can observe nature at close quarters, especially when you move through the backwaters. It is also a smooth ride, unlike a car where you have to experience potholes, traffic jams and air pollution.”

The club, incidentally, has 11 kayaks. And they have all been imported, from the Prijon Kayak Company in Rosenheim, Germany, which is known the world over for making the best kayaks. The length of a single kayak is 16 feet, and its width is two feet. And it weighs only 24 kgs.

Damschen fell in love with kayaking as a child growing up in the town of Gelsenkirchen in North Germany. One day, when he was ten years old, while walking, with his grandfather, Johann, from a bridge he could see kayaks on a river. “I immediately became fascinated,” says Damschen. “But my grandfather told me that I had to be 16 years of age before I could learn it.”

So, when he reached that age, Damschen joined the Gelsenkirchen Kanu Club. Thereafter, for the next 12 years, he did kayaking in Europe, totalling a distance of 10,000 kms. “The kayaks, called Faltboot, could be folded up and taken around like a rucksack,” says Damschen.

However, in 1977, Damschen made a car trip, with Annelies, from Switzerland where he lived, to Kerala and Sri Lanka. They fell in love with Kerala. In 1981, the couple stayed in Thiruvananthapuram and spent six months there and six months in Switzerland. This went on for a few years. But, in 1996, Damschen settled in Kochi, where he has made a name as a restoration architect.

His future plans include teaching youngsters the joy of kayaking. “It is far more beneficial rather than spending time in malls, which is what most youths do these days,” he says, with a smile.

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram)

COLUMN: LOCATION DIARY

Director Jeethu Joseph talks about his experiences in the films, 'Papanasam', 'Drishyam', and 'My Boss'

Photos: Jeethu Joseph by Ratheesh Sundaram; poster of Kamal Haasan in 'Papanasam'

By Shevlin Sebastian

In the film, 'Papanasam' (The Tamil remake of 'Drishyam'), there is a scene where cops come to the house of businessman Suyambulingam (played by Kamal Haasan), to look for the dead body of a boy. To show that he had been beaten up earlier, Kamal's nose needed to swell up a bit. So, at the location shoot, at Thodupuzha, in August, 2014, Kamal pushed a piece of rubber up his nose.

After a while, director Jeethu Joseph observed that Kamal was fidgeting a bit. So he went up and said, “Sir, what has happened?”

Kamal said, “It seems the rubber piece has vanished.”

Jeethu looked up the nose but could not see anything. Kamal immediately told the director to carry on with the shoot. But Jeethu said, “Sir, that is not possible. We need to get it out.”

So they went to a nearby clinic. The doctor pleaded helpnessness.

Thereafter, they went to a private hospital near Thodupuzha. The doctors had been informed earlier. They immediately took Kamal inside the Intensive Care Unit. “It took them twenty minutes to pull the piece out,” says Jeethu. “They had to do something similar to endoscopy. Anyway, I was so relieved that everything had turned out to be okay.”

The next day, the shoot carried on, but it was related to the same scene.

As Jeethu was walking past, Kamal called out to him. When he came near, Kamal said, “Don't laugh, but I am going to tell you something.” Jeethu waited calmly. Then Kamal said, “It went up today also.”

Jeethu looked shocked. But Kamal smiled and said, “Don't worry. I had put a longer piece, so I managed to pull it out.”

Then they both burst out laughing.

Jeethu got another shock at during the shoot of 'Drishyam' at Vaduthala, near Thodupuzha. There was a scene inside a house. While Mohanlal, who played cable service operator Georgekutty, waited there, an assistant had gone to call Meera, who played Georgekutty's wife, Rani. She was getting her make-up done in her trailer. Suddenly, Jeethu saw associate director Cylex creep out of the house and start running.

Jeethu shouted, “What's happening, Cylex?”

Cylex said, “Meena.”

But by the time, Jeethu reached the trailer, Meena had been put in a car which sped away. “It was a panic situation,” says the director.

At the hospital, Cylex called Jeethu and told the story. Apparently, when the assistant stepped in to give Meera a few pages of the script, she was immobile, with unblinking eyes. That was when he realised something was wrong.

Meanwhile, it took 15 minutes for Meera to regain consciousness. “The doctor said that it was a lack of sleep and mental strain that made her lose consciousness,” says Jeethu. “She has a three-year-old daughter, Nainikia, who would not sleep at night. She would keep playing. Hence, Meena could not get any rest at night and in the day she was busy working.”

It was also a hectic time during the shoot of 'My Boss' in Kuttanad, in April, 2012. This was for a shoot for the song, ‘Kuttanadan Punchaneele’, in which Mamta Mohandas plays football in a slushy paddy field. “The work went through fine and I said, 'Pack up',” says Jeethu.

Suddenly, there was a commotion. Just ten feet away, there was a cobra lying on the mud. “It had eaten something and could not move,” says Jeethu. “So, it lay heavy on the water. It was pure luck. If somebody had stamped on it, the cobra would have bit that person and there could have been fatal consequences.”

Finally, a crew member killed it.

(The New Indian Express, Kochi, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram)

Sleeping Below Water

The Unsung Revolutionary

A Look At Bullying And Class Hypocrisy

Grace And Naturalness

The Third Gender Express Themselves

The Horse That Would Not Move Forward

Wilting Grass, Leaves and Trees

The Kingdom Of Heaven

'Java is simple, powerful and robust'

Painted On Stone

Plant A Sapling, Grow A Tree

Slithering Snakes!

On The High Seas

With Tushar Gandhi

A Touch Of Italy On The Kerala Coastline

Travelling The Globe

When Elephants Went Berserk

A Kaleidoscopic View

Smoothly Gliding Along

Pushing A Rubber Piece Up The Nose