Panaji: A fever played the spoilsport. Otherwise, an entire family from Kerala would have been at the IFFI venue here, not as mere delegates but as the crew of a film.
When it was time for him to work on a film as part of his post-graduation at the prestigious Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata, Gireesh Kumar K. had everything ready with him-the story in his mind and actors at his home.
Gireesh Kumar's "Randu Kurippukal" (Two Notes) which was screened at the 47th edition of IFFI here as part of the Indian Panorama (non-feature) section has his father (V.Narayanan Master), mother (K. Padmavathy Teacher), wife (Sharika), son (Satyajit) and a friend (P.T.Manoj) as the actors.
The film goes through the tough times in the lives of an old couple who waits to see their daughter and grandson, and that of a boatman in the village. It revolves around how a crucial decision taken by the boatman to overcome the dilemma in his life after his wife leaves him changes the world around the old couple.
The film, which has won the Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for the Best Short Film in Kolkata International Film Festival last year and selected in the Cannes Short Film Corner 2016, was appreciated well by the IFFI crowd too.
Hailing from Payyannur in Kannur, Gireesh works as a primary school teacher in Kasaragod. The passion for becoming a filmmaker grew deeper in him when he was doing academic research on how to use films as an instrument of language teaching.
"The thought (to learn direction) struck me when I was doing my MPhil at the English and Foreign Languages University in Hyderabad. Then I applied for SRFTII and managed to win a seat in the Post Graduate Programme in Cinema specialized in direction and screenplay writing," Gireesh told Onmanorama on the sidelines of IFFI.
Gireesh is so convinced about the power of cinema as an art form that he says he will never enter the world of commercial films. He said he would like to continue with his career as a teacher and do films simultaneously.
"Being with children is a great learning experience. I firmly believe that your experiences are more important than your academic lessons to do a film," he said.
Asked about the decision to cast his family members for the film, Gireesh said, "When you are clear about what you want to do or say through your film, there is no need of stars."
Gireesh does not wish to release his films on YouTube or similar platforms. Instead, he wishes to screen it through film societies and similar collectives.
Expressing dissent over small and independent films being denied the opportunities to be screened before a wider audience, he exuded hope that the government's initiative to open theaters across the state would bring in a positive change.
Gireesh enjoys full support from his family to pursue his dreams, which is evident from their decision to join him as actors. The shoot for "Randu Kurippukal" was finished in eight days in Kolkata. His earlier short film 'Jalasayanam' had also won the Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award for the Best Short Film in KIFF in 2014. His documentary "8 Rooms & 9 Doors" won the Golden Owl award for the best documentary in 8th Cut-in National Students Festival 2015, Mumbai. He won the best director award at the XIX International Faludi Academia Film Institute Festival, Budapest, Hungary for his film ‘Jalasayanam’ in 2015. "Randu Kurippukal" also won the prestigious 'John Abraham National Award for the Best Short Fiction' at SiGNS 2016.
“Above all these awards, I’m happy that my faculty at SRFTI said it was the best produced in the institute,” a joyful Gireesh says.