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On screen romance with the wild
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LAKSHMI BALAKRISHNAN talks to the man who has helped bring wildlife concerns to the drawing rooms.
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`Awards help in motivating you to work harder... '
TIME STANDS still in the old antique clock that `demands' space in a corner of his Chirag Enclave basement workplace. Still, yet moving!
It is silence that greets you to film-maker Mike Pandey's studio near Nehru Place. His dog looks on approvingly as you remove your shoes before walking on the wooden floor that leads to the little world of `greens' that Mike has created.
One would have expected to see him basking in the glory of having achieved yet another first. The news capsule `Shores of Silence' made by him was adjudged the exceptional news capsule at the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association Rolls Royce Award ceremony held last Tuesday.
But awards, as the film-maker says, "help in motivating you to work harder. For me, the biggest reward after `Shores of Silence' was the Government acknowledgement of the killings of sharks and the decision to put a ban on it.''
Mike's love story with nature dates back to his childhood days. Thanks to his father's job, Mike grew up in the greens of Kenya, playing around the wild lands near Nairobi National Park. "I took the first few snaps of my life when I was seven-years-old. I was the head of the high school team and we would raise money by taking pictures of garden parties, among other things,'' he remembers.
However, life as an environment film-maker in India is not easy. With not many channels interested in airing programmes that speak of social responsibility, finding a platform to display such films is difficult. Add to it the dangers inherent in the filming process, and it is not a job that everyone will take up.
``Of course, one does face dangerous situations. While shooting for `Shores of Silence', we knew the problems we could face. The boats were unsafe and ill equipped. The Government had refused to acknowledge the existence of sharks in the Indian sea. It was three long years of hard work, but the result was satisfying,'' he says.
As for the Government support, Mike says, "Conservation cannot be viewed in isolation. The Government has to help spread the word. The world has been screaming on how tigers are being killed. But what has the Indian government done to spread awareness? There must be attempts to create awareness at the grass root level. Also, there is a great divide in the way international and Indian film-makers are treated here.''
Presently working on various marine life forms like turtles, coral reef and a documentary on resources of the ocean, Mike is also gearing up to make his first feature film that will focus on children and environment.
That he enjoys his work is obvious the minute one steps into his studio. Spread around are things that Mike has collected over the years. One shelf displays a set of homeopathic medicines that are now a permanent part of his baggage. "Many of these tribal people don't know how to put herbs to the best use. Since I couldn't carry allopathic medicines, I decided to learn about homeopathy, so I could give them something in return. It always comes around,'' believes Mike.
Ask him what scares him about the wilds, and Mike is quick to ignore the scare part, preferring to say: "If there is one animal I am cautious of, it is the leopard. It is a thinking animal that designs its moves well.''
Then again, he pauses for a minute before quipping: "The only animal I am really scared of is the one that walks on two legs. It is rather unpredictable.''
Photo: S. Subramanium
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Life
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
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