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The Hindu
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
From pencil to picture: Rathan Gangadhar's ‘Sees Kaddi' draws from life and friendship
The Kannada film, Sees Kaddi, marks Rathan Gangadhar's directorial debut. It is an anthology that explores stories about children through the metaphor of a pencil. The film has already made a mark on the festival circuit. It was screened at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (2023), selected for the 10th Noida International Film Festival (2023), where it won Best Direction, and also featured at the Bharat International Film Festival (2023), where it received the Best Children's Film award. Despite the accolades, Rathan remains anxious. 'I only hope the film appeals to the audience,' says the 39-year-old director, who has previously helmed numerous ad films. Explaining the title, Sees Kaddi, he says, 'It translates to 'pencil' in English.' The film is a drama designed for younger audiences, crafted as a bridge between mainstream and children-focused storytelling.' Structured as a hyperlinked anthology, its narratives do not follow a chronological order. 'Instead,' Rathan explains, 'they reflect the experience of using a pencil — you write, erase, sharpen the lead, and continue. The stories unfold in a similar rhythm.' Born and raised in Bengaluru, Rathan is an alumnus of MES College, Malleswaram, where he first discovered his passion for theatre and writing. The idea for Sees Kaddi, he reveals, was sparked by a single paragraph he read in a short story collection by Paulo Coelho. 'I read the book in 2016, and something about that paragraph stayed with me. It touched me deeply, and I began building stories around those words and concepts.' What started as a spark soon evolved into a collaborative effort. 'My friends and I came together to shape the story and develop the screenplay,' says Rathan, adding that the entire team behind the film consists of close friends. 'They're my sounding boards, my collaborators, and now, my cast and crew. Sees Kaddi is a film made by friends, with friends for an audience we hope will become friends too.' Rathan shares that Sees Kaddi features a rich tapestry of dialects from across Karnataka, including rural Tumakuru, Bengaluru, Havyaka, and North Karnataka. 'I believe the Tumakuru dialect hasn't really been explored in cinema,' he says. 'Since my father is originally from Tumakuru, I have a special fondness for it.' Rathan began his journey in the film industry in 2012 as an assistant writer. 'Unfortunately, the films I worked on never saw the light of day, but I learned a great deal through the process,' he reflects. He later transitioned into advertising to hone his filmmaking skills, working on several high-profile campaigns, including one featuring the late Puneeth Rajkumar. Despite his background in advertising, Rathan admits that marketing a film presents a whole new set of challenges. 'Cinema is a completely different ball game altogether,' he says. Sees Kaddi is produced under Grahana, a production house he co-founded in 2017 with friends Sampath Shivshankar and Krithi Nannnaiah. Featuring a cast of theatre and child actors, the film released on June 6.
The Hindu
21-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Migrant girl's journey now part of Kerala's school curriculum
A small tiled house in Muppathadam, near Eloor in Ernakulam, has been receiving many visitors in recent days. People are coming to meet and congratulate Dharaksha Parveen, a young woman originally from Bihar, whose life story has now found its way into the school curriculum. Twelve years ago, Dharaksha moved from Bihar to Kerala. Now, a memoir in the form of a letter to a friend—where she recalls her childhood in Bihar and how her life changed after moving to Kerala—has been included in the new textbook for Class VI in Kerala. The memoir she wrote in Malayalam, Thozhilinte Ruchi, Bhashayudeyum (which translates to The Taste of Labour and Language), recalls how her impoverished family, with no resources or proper educational infrastructure in their native village in Darbhanga, rebuilt their lives after arriving in Kerala. It also highlights how the Kerala government's special education programme Roshni, designed for the children of migrant labourers, helped her achieve her dream. 'In Bihar, I studied up to Class III. The school had no benches, desks, or even enough teachers. When we came to Kerala, I joined Class IV here. We had everything we needed—good furniture, books, and teachers. My siblings also joined school here,' an excited Dharaksha said. Dharaksha soon began learning Malayalam and even tutored the children of migrant labourers in government schools under the Roshni programme. 'The children face difficulties with the language when they join schools here, so I helped them using my knowledge of Hindi and my basic understanding of Bengali and Oriya,' Dharaksha said. Her father, Muhammed Sameer, works at a footwear manufacturing company in Ernakulam. From a young age, Dharaksha was eager to earn something on her own. She has a passion for fashion design and enrolled in an ITI course immediately after completing her 10th standard. 'I wanted to study fashion design as I've always been passionate about creating clothes. Now I'm working in that field and also pursuing a degree in Hindi language through distance education from Indira Gandhi National Open University,' she said. Her mother, Rajiya Khath, is a housewife. Her brothers Mohammed Sameer studies at MES College, Marampilly, and Mohammed Adil is a Plus Two student at GHSS, Muppathadam. At a recent function in Kochi, where Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was also present, Dharaksha spoke about how the State's strong public education system in Kerala had helped her receive a good education. She also requested the Chief Minister to extend the Roshni scheme to all government schools across the State. 'I was told that the Chief Minister has agreed to my suggestion to extend the scheme to all schools. I am yet to receive confirmation,' Dharaksha said. Her biggest dream is to own a house in Kerala, and she is now working hard to make that dream a reality. 'I love this State and consider my arrival here the greatest stroke of luck in my life. Everyone here has supported and encouraged me,' Dharaksha said. It was a teacher from Palakkad who, after hearing Dharaksha's story, encouraged her to write down her experiences. Her account was later selected by the State government's textbook committee to be included in the curriculum. Director General of Education Shanavas S, said Dharaksha's memoir was the best representation of the State Education department's efforts to bring the children of guest workers into the mainstream. This has been achieved by offering training in Malayalam, while also using facilitators to help the children continue learning their languages through the Roshni project. 'We had recommended Dharaksha's writing to the curriculum committee of the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) and they acknowledged that the girl's writing in Malayalam was of high quality and a genuine account of the benefits of the Roshni scheme. So, they decided to include it in Class VI curriculum from this academic year,' Mr. Shanavas said. He added that, based on the girl's request, the government has taken steps to extend the Roshni project to all government schools as well.
