A two-hour English documentary, ‘ On A Quest’ chronicles Swami Chinmayananda’s remarkable journey from the inquisitive child Balan to a rebellious youth, a revolutionary freedom fighter and a daring atheist to his transformation into the missionary saint Swami Chinmayananda.
Produced by the Chinmaya Mission (CM) to mark the birth centenary (2015-16) celebrations of Swami Chinmayananda, one of the foremost exponents of Vedanta, the film has been directed by R.S.Prasanna who made his Tamil debut with the critically acclaimed " Kalyana Samayal Saadham".
In the wildly inspirational and life-affirming biopic, all actors are CM members and the entire project has been coordinated by the monks. Sandeep, a real-life monk, plays the younger version while national award winning art director Thota Tharani has donned the greasepaint to play the Hindu spiritual leader in his later years when he inspired the formation of Chinmaya Mission. From the start to the finish, including the writing of the script, the entire project was led by Swami Mitrananda, Acharya of CM Chennai and Director of All India Chinmaya Yuva Kendra.
Says Swami Sivayogananda, Acharya of CM Madurai Centre, “Good citizenship is the need of the hour and this film will surely inspire individual transformation not only spiritually but at every level and in any field of life.”
He is happy with the interest generated among the city people about the film slated for screening at the Ambika multiplex Theatre in Anna Nagar tomorrow (Sunday, January 25). It will be run simultaneously in two theatres with a combined seating capacity of 1,060. The time of the show is 8.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m.
“There are invaluable lessons to be learnt from the life of Swami Chinmayananda,” says the Madurai Acharya, “how as an individual and a non-believer he transformed himself into one of the most powerful orators of the teachings expounded in the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads and guided people to their own quest.”
Since ‘On A Quest’ aims to reach out to children and the youth in particular who have not had the privilege of meeting the Swami in person, more than half the tickets for the Sunday show have been sold to school and college students. With more requests and queries coming in, the CM Madurai Centre may plan another show next month depending on the availability of theatres.
The movie was first premiered in Chennai last month in the presence of Swami Tejomayananda, the Global Head of Chinmaya Mission, senior acharyas, young and old devotees from across the globe and the entire team behind the movie. Ever since, the biopic has been travelling all over the country and the world. Viewers have reviewed and described the film in superlative praise and especially appreciated director Prasanna’s succinct touch in showing the young atheist who was also a sceptical academician and an outspoken and witty journalist eventually turn into a seeker of Truth and finally becoming an enlightened visionary carrying the message of the rishis to the masses across the world in a language that they would all understand.
Since several inspiring biopics were made in the past on revolutionaries like Mangal Pandey, Bhagat Singh and saints like Adi Sankaracharya and Swami Vivekanada, the CM members felt the impact of a movie on Swami Chinmayananda, who was both a revolutionary and a saint, would be far more than the books written on him. Once decided, CM members all over the world donated their time, money, resources into making of this unique film, which instead of being preachy is a beautiful visual journey.
If you are looking for an inspiring transformational story, then don't miss it this Sunday!
