An election awareness documentary made by the Theni administration is creating ripples in the district.
Conceptualised by 32-year-old Revenue Divisional Officer T. Muthu Mathavan, the short film has been shot with a technical finesse that is unseen and unheard of in the sub-genre of government documentaries.
The film opens with a classroom shot and then the camera zooms in to the protagonist, Sivagami, a young tribal girl from Rasimalai. The viewer is then transported through mesmerising shots of a fertile Theni district lying beneath a lush green western ghats. Shots of Bodi Mettu intersperse with Rasimalai as Sivagami makes her way to the village ready to motivate the villagers to exercise their franchise. She breathes in the heady aroma of lush cardamom plants and reminisces the words of her grandfather who had said that after Independence, it was only on the voting day that everyone in the country was brought together on a common platform. This is where the heart of the film lies.
And then the camera pans out to Sivagami telling an old woman under the glow of the available street light, that it was the vote that brought electricity to the village.
Yazh Iniyal, the artist who plays Sivagami, says it is the script and the theme that brought her on board. As a tribal girl who sees the vote as an instrument that will bring about a change in the village, Yazh Iniyal etches the role perfectly well.
Michael Jackson, associate cameraman, says, “we were given a brief on topics that have to be touched like ballot boxes that can be taken to those living in hilly terrain and use of postal ballots. This helped our team from Chennai and we were able to shoot the film in two weeks. High-end cameras along with drone shots have been used to give a natural feel.”
“When Mr. Muthu sir said the documentary should reach the unreached community like those living in the hills, we hit upon the idea of weaving the message within a story that will talk to these people. Except for the protagonist, who is a film artiste from Chennai, all others are residents of Rasimalai”, said director of the film Mohan Raj.
Credit for the sharp editing of this documentary, which plays out like a movie, goes to Praveen Baskar, who has worked in the recent Tamil movie Lal Salaam.
For Mr. Muthu Mathavan, who also wrote the script, it was the desire to make a film that would talk to the people and make them realise the importance of voting.
Theni Collector R. V. Shajeevana says that the focus of the documentary was to target the first generation voters and Yazh Iniyal portrayed the character to perfection. “There is no discrimination on voting day. On that day everyone stands as equal and this is what the film wants to showcase,” she said and added that Chief Electoral Officer Satyabrata Sahoo had appreciated the documentary.
The movie does talk and also creates the much needed awareness among the people that it is “our votes that will change the course of our lives.”
To see the election awareness documentary log on to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDsyFAxnI1Y
