KOCHI: Suresh Gayathri, a Sanskrit teacher, is on a mission to popularise the ancient classical language. What better way to popularise it than make a film in the language? Suresh is on the path to making a children’s movie named ‘Madhubhashitham’ in Sanskrit. The movie will be shot in 48 hours to earn a world record.
Reviving kids’ interest in the language is very important, says Suresh. “People believe that Sanskrit is a dead language. We use a lot of Sanskrit words in our daily life, but the language could die in a few years without the right efforts to promote it. We are trying to prove that Sanskrit isn’t as difficult a language as it is being made out to be,” says Suresh who teaches at Sree Narayana UPS (SNUPS), Kollayil in Palode.
According to Suresh, most movies in Sanskrit talk about tradition and mythology and hardly deal with conversations in the masses. “So we planned to do a movie that will have social implications and reflections and will cater to the masses at the same time. The movie deals with protecting our trees and the importance of Ayurveda,” says Suresh.
The shoot is set to begin in December in Varikkasseri Mana. The one-hour 30-minute movie will also feature a song with students. The song will be shot in different schools. The movie also attempts to earn a record. “It is a language that is more than 5,000 years old. But we have failed to achieve a good record around it. By attempting this record, we intend to bring more attention to the language,” says Suresh.
Suresh is the director of the movie written by police officer Prasad Parapuram. Muthalapuram Mohandas and Hariprasad Kadambooru are the lyricists. Arun S Vlathankara composed the music. The movie is being produced by SGISFSY Productions, which is a consortium of students, Sanskrit teachers, retired Sanskrit teachers and parents. The society was set up to promote the Sanskrit language and has over 500 members.
This is Suresh’s second tryst with movie-making. His first movie ‘Madhurasmitham’, was also made in Sanskrit. Suresh says that Madhurasmitham is the first children’s movie in Sanskrit.
“We never had a children’s film in Sanskrit. So in classes, we couldn’t screen any movies in Sanskrit. And that’s when we decided to make one,” recalls Suresh. The movie was a collective effort of students and teachers. The movie has also received the SCERT’s nod to screen it in the schools.
“Cinema is a popular medium. By choosing this medium, we get to reach out to a larger crowd and dispel all misconceptions about the Sanskrit language,” he says.