KOCHI:After getting a bunch of noted playback singers to feature in his music album released last year, city-based music composer S R Suraj has added another feather to his cap. He has now received the award for the best music director at the Sign in Media(SIM1) Short Film Festival jointly organised by Cinema Charcha and Padma Movies in collaboration with Kozhikode District Tourism Promotion Council, for the short film ‘Theeram Thedi’, his debut musical venture.
For the BSNL employee, who is also a passionate musician, it is not just the joy of having received the recognition for the musical venture, but the fact that the short film was selected from a list of around 300 other entries from all over the state.To add to that, the film has also bagged a place among the top 5 entries at the festival, landing its actor Aravind V K the recognition for one of the best actors.
The composer who is also an alumni of the SCT College of Engineering, Pappanamkodu, is overjoyed at having received the acclaim for his debut project. It was along with a bunch of his friends, also alumnus of the same college, that Suraj decided to collaborate on the initiative. Talking about how it all started, he said, “Back in college, we had decided on doing a project like this. While I was enthusiastic about music, Aravind’s forte was acting. Now that all of us are employed and settled, I figured this was the perfect time to get together.”
His second venture was the Onam music album ‘Ponnavani Pattukal’ which was produced by Ambady Visual Media and released by Muzik247 last year. The album featuring twelve songs had playback singers like Gayathri Ashok, Mridula Varier, Sudeep Kumar, Madhu Balakrishnan, Unni Mukundan and Vijay Yesudas lending their voices, apart from a track song by Suraj himself. According to him, the album was much noted, garnering a very good response, including an appreciation from legendary singer K J Yesudas.
The award function was held during the two-day-long short film festival held at Kozhikode. Renowned film director Sajith Jagadnandan handed over the award to Suraj on the occasion.
The story of the short film revolves around ‘Rameshan’, a widower as well as an unemployed Goldsmith. The film produced jointly by Ambady Visual Media and Vaishnavi Creations portrays not just Rameshan’s struggles while taking care of his sick daughter Kingini as well as landing a job, but also a deeper message on how an optimistic attitude can change one’s life.
Narrating how superstitions can make or break your life, ‘Theeram Thedi’ shows how the pivotal character chooses to stay away from them.The new-found recognition has not stopped Suraj in his tracks. The ardent music lover is all geared up to collaborate in another short film. Winding up, he adds, “This will be a music-themed film that shows the relationship between a music teacher and a student. We selected the particular theme so that I can contribute more and experiment much in terms of music.”