At the age of nine, when Kishan Shrikanth was acknowledged as the youngest director with his first film Care of Footpath in the year 2006, his creative instincts were that of someone about fifteen years older. And having made a success of it by starting young, he has learnt early, what many learn much later. All set with his next outing, Care of Footpath 2, a sequel to the first, it is obvious that his intellect has matured.
According to him, at 19, while he understands intellectual and technical issues, he has started enjoying them more than he did when he was nine.
“As a director, there is a vast difference between the first film and the sequel because I took up my second film after a nine-year gap. I should say, in the aesthetic sense of filmmaking and how the movie has to be shot, there is a big difference. As a technician, I should say, I have grown. After my first film, I got an opportunity to learn various different aspects of filmmaking and stereoscopy was one of them, which nobody has tried here, till date,” says Kishan.
He adds that while the first was a bridge cinema, the sequel, which holds a strong message, is a commercial entertainer.
“There is a complete new look in Care of Footpath 2,” he asserts.
Kishan says the film is not a typical sequel. “The film is more like a reboot. Since, it is again based on street children, I had to retain the title. Otherwise, the story has crime, action and is an emotional suspense thriller. It is a point of view cinema; we don’t take a stand at the end and leave the decision to the audience,” he notes.
Care of Footpath 2 revolves around juveniles and Kishan took three years to conceive the story. It all happened when he visited street children and got to know that they never went to schools and all had a brush with crime. “I was shocked and when I spoke to them, I got to know that they had a bad childhood, abandoned by parents and society. The government is providing education to students at government schools, but what happens to those who have nobody and live on the streets. On the whole, there is lack of initiation by people. That’s how I could conceived the story and I followed it up with the screenplay,” he elaborates.
Revealing a bit on the story, he says the plot revolves around four youngsters who plan to kill a cop. “How they accomplish it and face the circumstances of law and apathy of the society is what Care of Footpath 2 is about,” he says.
His love for cinema has only pushed him to take Care of Footpath 2 to the Oscars, which has made a lateral entry. “Even if the movie is getting a nomination to the Oscars is a big thing. Personally for me, it was a dream since I was nine-years-old when I made my first film. I am sure, even if Care of Footpath 2 doesn’t make it, I will not stop. I will go on and try my best. Why I feel that this movie deserves an international recognition is because of the theme which is about the life of juveniles and the process of reforming them, which needs to get noticed across the globe,” he says.