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Sad 'Adayalangal' paved the path to success
The Adayalangal team: From left, Dr C.J John, K.V. Sarathchandran, N.F. Varghese, M.K. Warrier, V.S. Ravindranath, Manju C. Mathew and N.K. Sebastian
THERE WERE indelible signs right from the time `Adayalangal' was planned. Both Dr. C.J.John, who scripted the radio play and K.V.Sarathchandran, who directed it, wanted something that would be socially relevant. There were so many themes that were discussed and finally they decided to rework on a tragedy that struck the very heart of Keralites _ the landslip at Amboori, which wiped out almost every member of a family. Calamity, death, wrought by man's selfishness, his greed was then the theme that they worked on. It was just another sign of Nature's fury against man. That this play would win the first place in the All Kerala Radio Drama Festival 2002 seemed to be destiny's choice. That this would win NF the best actor award was also destined, one can't but conclude. Sarath is a tad sad even as he rejoices at his winning the best director for the same play. Wait, the best scriptwriter (Dr C. J. John) was also from this play.
The late N.F.Varghese played the lead role of Mathukutty. "When we thought of this character, the only name that came to mind was that of `NF's. Mathukutty, in this play, represents a generation of humans who exploited Nature, but always cared for it. He knew that this land, trees and birds had to be given their space. And human beings needed to share what was left. There had to be love for other creatures of this universe. Natural disasters occur when Man tends to violate this unwritten code. NF simply excelled in this role," said Sarath. And a week after this play was recorded, NF breathed his last.
When most of the other plays at the All-Kerala Radio Drama Festival were big budget projects, this one by the Kochi station, was produced on a very low budget. "I think we spent only around Rs. 10,000 for this play. But we enjoyed every moment of making it. NF was quite impressed by the work and even went around telling his film-friends to listen to this play. It was not a surprise that he won the best actor award, despite the presence of some big names in the business," felt Sarath.
Again there were death signs. Almost a week was lost when NF lost his brother. "Though NF said that it was a relief to be away from his brother's bedside, he never seemed to be his usual self during the recording. And when the news of the death came we decided to put off the work. A week later NF called up to fix up the new dates. It showed the dedication of the artiste," Sarath reminisced.
There was a flood of letters applauding the play and NF in particular. The actor himself was quite agog with excitement at the overwhelming response. But there were no signs of the tragedy that waited in the shadows. "NF's death came as a blow to all of us. Despite the success of `Adayalangal' we are left with a sense of profound loss. NF was the soul of this play," said Sarath.
The other artistes in the award-winning play were M.K Warrier, V.S.Ravindranath, N. K. Sebastian, R.C.Gopal and Manju C. Mathew.
K. PRADEEP
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