One evening, in the excessive ranges of Kerala, persons are woken up by rumbling sounds that appeared to originate from beneath the earth. Rattled, they scatter about, uncertain of what would observe. When these occurrences preserve repeating, threatening their very peace and stability, persons are pressured to abandon their properties and migrate to “safer” locations.
But the place are these “safer” locations? asks debutant film director Sreekanth Pangapattu, whose film, Boothalam (Hidden Tremors), which is predicated on the lives of those local weather refugees, will be screened as the solely Malayalam characteristic film entry at the forty fourth Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF).
“We, in Kerala, have been facing one ecological disaster after another. Where are the safe places? Where do we go from here?” Sreekanth asks.
A nonetheless from the film
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Bhoothalam centres on atypical individuals dwelling in an environmentally fragile space and the way they navigate via the challenges posed by their land and their lives. As they grapple with the bigger ecological grief, in addition they have to cope with their private crises. The film, written and directed by Sreekanth, explores concepts of loss and survival in an unstable world.
Hailing from Kanjirapally, Sreekanth has skilled these tremors himself, he says, and heard of it occurring in close by locations akin to Chenappady and different hilly areas in Kerala. “The thundering sound is unnerving. Geologists explain they are caused by subtle seismic shifts (that measure up to 2.1 on the Richter scale), but to a common man, they can be terrifying.”
Sreekanth Pangapattu
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Over the years, local weather change and unregulated developmental plans have had an influence on the land and its individuals, observes Sreekanth, an architect by occupation. (Sreekanth has his personal agency, PG Group Designs, primarily based in Kanjirappally).
A author, with six short-story collections to his credit score, Sreekanth primarily based one among his tales, titled Muzhakkam, on this phenomenon of seismic shift. “I wanted to explore this further, did my reasearch — speaking to geologists and environmental experts. I wanted to understand the plight of the people living in a disaster prone land, struggling with uncertainties of various kinds. That led to Bhoothalam,” he provides.
Headlined by Indrans, the film additionally stars theatre actor NS Thara, Kalabhavan Rahman, Manuraj, Babu Manappally and Babu Sebastian in vital roles. “Indrans was a conscious choice for the role as his style and mannerisms were a perfect fit for the character. The audience would be able to relate to him easily,” says Sreekanth.
Cinema, a ardour
Cinema will not be alien to Sreekanth. Before beginning his architectural follow, he was a part of manufacturing designer Sabu Cyril’s group as an assistant. “Cinema is my passion. I was curious about it and as a medium, it is a constant source of inspiration for me,” says Sreekanth, who has directed three brief movies.
He wrote the script for Bhoothalam in 2024, and issues panned out sooner than he anticipated. The shoot was accomplished in 25 days. Shot at Meladukkam, in Kottayam district, 3,500 ft above sea stage, the location itself posed a number of challenges. “The climate was adverse and we often had to deal with thunder and lightning while shooting,” says Sreekanth.
While Nikhil S Praveen has dealt with the cinematography, the modifying is by Vishal VS. Rajesh Chalachitram’s sound results and Erik Johnson’s background rating add to the poignancy of the theme. The 88-minute competition is doing its competition rounds and can be screened at VIFF in October.
