THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan will inaugurate the first screening of ‘Life for Lives’, the 45-minute documentary by Roshni Rose on July 7 at 9 am at Kalabhavan. The documentary is based on the life of Kannan, who has been working at Periyar Tiger Reserve for more than three decades. Sugathakumari, filmmaker Venu, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests G Harikumar and wildlife photographer N A Naseer will be present.
For Kannan, a third generation immigrant from Bangladesh whose ancestors relocated to Kerala during the construction of Mullaperiyar dam, forest is his home. He knows every nook and cranny of the forest and is familiar with its flora and fauna. He knows their scientific names and unique characteristics. 35 years into his service, he is also an inevitable presence in the rescue operations of the Forest Department. When botanists, ornithologists and wildlife photographers visit the reserve forest, they specifically request for his help. When VIPs like Prince Charles, wildlife conservationist and founder of the Madras Snake Park Romulus Earl Whitaker and BBC wildlife photography director Jemma Ward visited Kerala they all were interested in meeting him.
The documentary film is a journey with Kannan through his area at Pachakad station, seeing and realising the importance of forest conservation. Amidst wild animals and poachers, his is also a high-risk job. But Kannan believes man and nature share a special bond and they can’t survive without each other. Because of his services, Kannan was recently given the post of watcher by Kerala government.
‘Life of Lives’, produced by Ajosh Parackan under the banner of Greenpix Media, has its script by Tomes Varghese Pulickan and Anamika. The narration is by Shobha Tharoor Sreenivasan and Reji Ramanchira. While Rajesh Dass has scored music, sound design is by Ratheesh Nanniyode.