Friday, April 16, 2010

Chronicling cultures


Dinakaran Jai, Documentary film Maker. Photo:S.  James
The Hindu Dinakaran Jai, Documentary film Maker. Photo:S. James

Not a professionally trained person and unperturbed by the struggles and travails in his life, documentary maker Dinakaran Jai has learnt and refined his skills on his own

PRODUCER'S TAKE

This dusky young man's sunny smile is quite infectious. Even after two hours of gruelling photo shoot in open fields with the sun beating down, he retains his cheerfulness.

There is absolutely no trace of fatigue much like his never-say-die attitude towards his work. In less than five years he has churned out 40 documentaries. And he is just 29, all set to tie the nuptial knot on April 18.

An opportunity to watch a series of documentaries on Indian freedom fighters, titled ‘Kaalam', brought me closer to docu-maker Dinakaran Jai.

“I wanted to document the chronicles of those who laid their lives for the country's freedom for the benefit of the future generation. I am also focussing on recording the richness of our culture and tradition in my next endeavour,” the no-nonsense filmmaker kickstarts his conversation with me.

Self learnt

Not a professionally trained person and unperturbed by the struggles and travails in his life, Dinakaran has learnt and refined his skills on his own.

“Succeeding in this field without any proper professional training takes considerable amount of time. What matters the most is how interested you are in your chosen field. The thirst for knowledge propels your further and passion becomes the driving force behind any successful venture. Without going to any film institute, people like Satyajit Ray made an impact in the industry. Such people are self-learnt. I follow them. I am also fortunate in having a Godfather in businessman C. Deenathayalapandian. He unflinchingly supports all my endeavours and has enabled me to scale greater heights,” he shares.

Focus on arts

Born in a not-so-affluent family Dinakaran had his job cut out from the beginning. It was in his genes to focus on arts as his father Lakshmana Thevar, a member of Netaji Bose's Indian National Army, was also a renowned stage artist and an integral part of Sankaradas Swamigal theatre group.

It took Dinakaran some time to pursue his dormant trait. Aimless wandering after graduation in pursuit of a suitable career option enriched his understanding of life.

“I learnt a lot during this period. I even took to spirituality and became a disciple to a sage and roamed around in the Kodaikanal hills with him. Realisation came only when the sage pointed out that it was not my cup of tea and asked me to leave,” he recalls.

His wish

His long time wish to become a journalist came true when he soon after started writing short stories and articles for literary journals and magazines. This helped him whet his writing skills. A meeting with film director Mahendran for an interview drew him to films.

“It was a revelation of sorts. He changed my focus and ignited interest in filmmaking. During the same time I was reading literary works of La.Sa. Ramamirtham, Mouni, Jayakanthan and Jayamohan for an article titled ‘Desiyathin Tharkolai'. While collecting details, I stumbled upon a book, ‘Military Reminiscences' by British Military Commander James Wells. It dwelt on Indian Freedom Struggle. I happened to read impressive history about Maruthu brothers, Kings of Sivaganga, which raised several questions in me,” he recounts.

A chance meeting with Mr. Deenathayalapandian changed his course of life as it could not have come at a better time. Just when he was contemplating to film the history of Maruthu brothers, like-minded Mr. Deenathayalapandian lent his unconditional financial support for Jai's venture.

“I learnt acting theory from reading Constantin Sergeyevich Stanislavski's writings and developed an interest in world cinema. I am a keen follower of Akira Kurosawa's movies. I still follow the making style of Ritwik Ghatak and consider him as my ‘manaseega' guru,” he admits.

His documentaries

Dinakaran's first project was ‘Maruthiruvar' in 2005. The 42-minute documentary, produced by Jegamathi Kalaikoodam, took six months.

Two years of intense research culminated in ‘Rehai'. The 43-minute critically acclaimed documentary discussed the plight of those branded as criminal tribes by the British Government. It was screened in Moscow and Hyderabad international film festivals.

Buoyed up by the acknowledgement and also taking a lead from his maiden venture, Dinakaran Jai embarked on the mega project of ‘Kaalam', wherein he talks about personalities and public contributions to Indian Freedom Movement. It is a collection of documentaries under 38 titles.

“It was truly a rewarding experience for me. I spent more than two and a half years exclusively on this project. Each title runs for about 30 minutes,” he says.

At present he is working on his next venture tentatively named “Othigai”.

“Our ancestors talk about 64 art forms. It is an exploration to ascertain the veracity behind this claim,” he informs.

His inquisitiveness has fetched him a berth in the short-term film appreciation course in Pune. He has delivered guest lectures on film language and script writing for the students of Journalism and Mass Communication of the Madurai Kamaraj University.

He is also working on a book titled “Kaatchi Mozhiyum Thiraikathai Ulaviyalum”.

“Lack of records on historical events has been the talking point for long. Our main objective is an attempt towards developing authentic documentary evidence,” he asserts.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

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Thevar's political vision

T. RAMAKRISHNAN


The volumes cover a wide range of issues, as seen and discussed by THEVAR

1949-PASUMPON THEVARIN SARVADESA ARASIYAL PARVAI:

1952-PASUMPON THEVARIN ARASIYAL MUZHAKKAM: Speeches and writings of U. Muthuramalinga Thevar: Compiled and edited by G. Bhoopathi Raja, Pasumpon Thevar Anmiga Manithaneya Nala Sangam, 14, Andavar Nagar II Street, Kodambakkam, Chennai-600024. Rs. 300 each.

One of the iconic leaders of Tamil Nadu, U. Muthuramalinga Thevar (1908-1963) hailed from the Ramanathapuram district. Drawn into the national movement, he became a devout follower of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. When Netaji visited the State immediately after the formation of the Forward Bloc in 1939, it was Thevar who played the key role in arranging a rousing reception in Madurai. He belonged to that school of Netaji followers which refused to believe that its leader died in an air crash in Taihoku in August 1945.

One of the founding members of the Forward Bloc, Muthuramalinga Thevar was a fierce critic of the Congress party and a political adversary of Kamaraj and also of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam founder, C.N. Annadurai, the two prominent leaders who shaped the destiny of the State for many years. Implicated in a murder case in 1957, he was, two years later, acquitted. But Thevar never gave up his antagonism vis-a-vis the Congress; nor did his attitude towards Kamaraj change.

The books under review cover a wide range of issues, as seen and discussed by Thevar. An interesting piece of information is that he ran a magazine, called ‘Netaji,' for some years, starting from January 1949. The editorials, written by him in the magazine and reproduced in the first book, reveal his deep understanding of the complexities and nuances of international politics. To cite a few instances: His concern for the plight of the people of Indian origin in Myanmar; his steadfast support to Mao and the Chinese revolution; his analysis of foreign policies of the United States and the United Kingdom; and his advice to the Indian government not to join the Western camp.

Critic of Congress

If there is a common theme running through the collection of Thevar's political speeches, it is the criticism of the Congress party's politics. His call for the unity of the Scheduled Castes and criticism of the public distribution system are as relevant now as they were during his time. That he was a strong supporter of the reorganisation of States on linguistic basis comes across from his article where he accuses the Congress of delaying the process.

One may or may not agree with the Forward Bloc leader's views on the different subjects covered in these two volumes. But any dispassionate student of contemporary history of Tamil Nadu will have a lot to gain by reading them. In compiling and editing the articles written and the speeches made over 50 years ago, Bhoopathi Raja has done his best to be faithful to the original.