P.H. Vishwanath, who has carved a niche for himself in the Kannada cinema industry, is returning to the silver screen after a six-year hiatus. Suli (Whirlpool) starring veteran actor Srinath, will hit the screens today.
This maker of sensible films such as Panchamaveda, Aragini, Srigandha, Rangoli Arunodaya, Andaman, Olave, Munjaneya Manju, Atimadhura Anuraga was in hibernation for some time, after he made a children’s film Kinnara Bale in 2009. It seems he was searching for a subject that suited his sensibilities. Suli delineates how innocent minds are trapped in the whirlpool of family emotions and how a sensible mind accepts challenges of life when its own existence is in trouble.
Suli is significant for more than one reason — the audience always expects something more from Vishwanath, because of the kind of films he had made so far, and for having been an ardent disciple of Puttanna Kanagal, legendary filmmaker. Vishwanath assisted Puttanna in his landmark films including Dharmasere, Ranganayaki, Manasa Sarovara, Dharani Mandala Madhyadolage . He has the credibility of not compromising with commercial pressures, and not giving in to remakes, despite economic pressures.
He adheres to the belief that the director and subject weigh more than stars in the films. His Panchamaveda, Aragini and Andaman have won various awards, including Karnataka State Film honours.
Except the 73-year old Srinath, all others in the cast are newcomers — Pragathi, Jayaram Ninasam, Channakeshava, Susheelamma, Advaith and Ashwith Shetty. Geetha Srinath, Srinath’s wife and T.S. Sathyanarayana have jointly produced Suli . For the first time in his five-decade-old career in Kannada cinema, Srinath is essaying the role of Budensabi- the head of a Muslim family. According to Vishwanath, the veteran actor has done justice to the character, who gets embroiled in a problem after getting his eldest daughter married, and centres around the lives of those who send their children for work to other parts of the country, says the veteran director.”
What inspired him to make Suli? “An article by journalist-writer Shivananda Kalave about a village on top of the hill in Yellapur taluk in Karwar district, where a saintly person transports materials needed for daily life on donkeys. The character of the person was haunting me for long. The plight of the villagers disappeared from my memory and only the godly qualities of the person remained. This is how the seed of Suli sprouted. It took a year to write a single line and another year to weave it in to a story,” he says.
The film according to him also deals with the system of marriage in the present socio-economic situation and delves into the attempts by a family to protect the institution of marriage. He faced challenges in depicting a Muslim family; he did not use the language the way it’s normally portrayed or associated with the community in commercial ventures. He has a reason to choose Srinath for Budensabi’s role.
“The story needed an actor with maturity. When narrating the story of the film to him and knowing Srinath from the days of Manasa Sarovara , I asked myself, why not Srinath, a jovial and happy person by nature. I thought he is tailor-made for that character. When asked, Srinath also agreed to essay the role. His choice reduced my burden to a considerable extent, as the need to polish the character did not arise, because of Srinath’s experience. I could concentrate on other minor characters,” says, Vishwanath with making it sound like he idolises the veteran actor.
Besides shooting indoor portions of the film in an old house of Kaggalahalli in Kanakapura taluk, outdoor portions were shot in Yadooru, the most inaccessible village in Koppa taluk of Chikkamagaluru district. The crew was forced to trek quite a long distance everyday to get to the location. The film was shot during monsoon and it was raining. But, rains did not dampen the crews’ spirit. “On reaching, we got great cooperation from the villagers and because of their support, we could catch some of the memorable shots in the film,” he admits.
