In a remote neighbourhood of Srirangam on the banks of the Kollidam river, lies the setting for 93* Not Out , a 19-minute short film that has garnered a long string of awards (74 to date) since it hit the festival circuit last September.
The latest triumph for the team of this homespun winner was a sold-out ticketed screening at the Star Theatre in Tiruchi on Independence Day (August 15). “It is possibly the first time a short film was showcased like a feature-length movie, with Digital Dolby sound and 2k resolution. We just uploaded a teaser on our Facebook page and asked people to turn up at the theatre. If we had known it would be so popular in the matinee slot, we would have booked the hall for a second show,” says the film’s director Arudra Saravanakumar. This is the third short film by his Tiruchi-based Arudra Pictures.
Twin loves
A story about an old man’s twin passions for books and cycling and how they complete the circle of his life in the end, 93* Not Out has several firsts to its credit, including being the first-ever Tamil movie to be screened at Paramount Theatre in Washington, United States. Starting with a film festival at Kolkata, it has been screened more than 300 times around the world.
Its most serendipitous discovery perhaps, is its 93-year-old hero (and Saravanakumar’s maternal grandfather) Chinnakrishnan Kaliyaperumal, who holds the Limca record for the oldest debut actor. Saravanakumar’s niece Sri Janani plays a supporting role.
“Thatha passed away on June 16 after a brief illness, and we felt the theatre screening would be the best way to honour his memory,” says Saravankumar.
Mr Kaliyaperumal’s Srirangam home forms a major part of the film’s backdrop, and is a monument to the interests of an active senior citizen.
His study room, for instance, is filled with several thousands of books and journals, some of them tied in bundles. A large worktable is filled with ‘photo projects’ in progress — large pictorial charts on various subjects that Mr Kaliyaperumal used to cut and paste up in his spare time.
The home’s walls are the gallery for his charts on political leaders, seasons, animals and proverbs among others.
“Once the polythene sheet was on, the charts would be ready for framing and display,” says K Thirumavalavan, one of Mr Kaliyaperumal’s 6 sons who also forms part of the film’s production team. “Father retired as a school headmaster in 1986, and he spent most of his spare time in this study room, getting these charts ready. In the pre-Google era, perhaps he felt they would be of use to students.”
Acting lessons
Saravanakumar got interested in cinematography when he was studying engineering, but didn’t get the opportunity to follow his heart a good 10 years after his graduation. “I shot my first short film on a handheld video camera that came as a wedding gift,” he says. “For 93* Not Out , I decided to invest in a basic Canon 5d DSLR camera, because I felt ready for a slightly advanced product.”
Working over 52 Sundays from 2015, (he still manages a construction business through the week), Saravanakumar roped in his family members (including his father-in-law and maternal uncle Veera Pandian) to star and assist in the production of 93* Not Out . “When the script was ready, I tried scouting for outside talent. But nearly everyone came up with a quotation of ₹7-8 lakhs. I thought it would be easier to cut costs by keeping it all in the family. Thatha was obviously the best choice to play himself,” he says.
But it wasn’t easy for his grandfather to act, admits Saravanakumar. “So I started enacting scenes for him that he would imitate. A newcomer needs more takes initially to get the action right,” he says.
The soundtrack by Rashaanth Arwin is integral to the success of 93* Not Out . “When I was told the story, the film was midway through production. I realised that the hero’s two interests — cycling and books — needed to be delineated clearly for the audience,” says Rashaanth, who works out of his home-based studio in Srirangam. “So I created a separate sound for each, using a blend of Carnatic and folk tunes.” He has interspersed the soundscape with silent pauses that heighten the narrative’s drama.
Message in a film
Saravanakumar is happy that his grandfather was able to see 93* Not Out do well after its release.
“We have fulfilled his dream of a theatre screening. His other wish was to have Superstar Rajnikanth see the movie and accept a gift of a book on Lord Krishna. I’m still trying to attain that goal,” he says.
If made well, short films have an immense potential to convey powerful messages couched as stories, says Saravanakumar, who won an award for his traffic awareness-transgender rights themed ThiruGangai this week.
“ 93* Not Out is a shout-out to our senior citizens to enjoy their retirement years, doing what they like best.
“When we kitted out a bicycle for Thatha to use in the film, he took off on it one day without telling us, to visit a friend living 15 kilometers away. If you get an opportunity to enjoy your old age, why not just grab it?” says Saravanakumar.
Though he has been able to get jobs in Chennai’s film industry based on his movie’s success, Saravanakumar says a full-time career in direction would not be possible immediately.
“I want to tell stories that will linger in the viewer’s mind once he or she leaves the theatre,” he says. “And that takes hard work.”
