22 Established 1961 Wednesday, March 13, 2019 Lifestyle Features Kochi Metro Short Film Fest forays into Kuwait New gen is reinventing cinema: Actor Raveendran By Sajeev K Peter “Today’s cinema has largely become more Raveendran joined Malayalam film industry Kuwait to explore the possibility of forming a realistic in which melodramatic acting or rhet- subsequently, acting predominantly in I V Sasi chapter of KMSFF in Kuwait,” he said. he Indian film industry is in the cusp of oric find little room. In a way, you are holding hits like Aswaratham, Ee Nadu, John Jaffer Raveendran held workshops for filmmakers from an evolution. The young and new gener- ‘a mirror up to the society’. Actors would be Janardhan, Innalengil Nale, Sindhoora Kuwait who participated in the KMSFF short Tation filmmakers are probably reinvent- behaving rather than acting,” he said explain- Sandhyakku Mounam, Iniyengilum, Athiratram, film festival that was held in Bahrain. ing cinema and seeking a new idiom for the ing the emerging trends in the South Indian Idanilangal, Karimbinpoovinakkare, Rangam “At Kochi Metro, we are providing a creative medium, said South Indian actor Raveendran cinema. Raveendran, also known as Ravindher and Abhayam Thedi etc. platform for aspiring expat film-makers. Kochi in a recent interview. is a versatile actor and is popular in South “I left cinema at the peak of my acting career Metro Short Film Fest (Middle East) is an inno- Indian film industry. to focus on my family business and to learn vative platform for creative minds. In addition to Interestingly, these new gen films enjoy a architecture. But later, I realized a need to the film festivals we hold at regular intervals at better rapport among the audience than the launch cinema literacy programs in Kerala,” different locations in the GCC, we nurture bud- big-budget film productions, he said citing the Raveendran recalled. He took some painstaking ding expat talents, train them both academically phenomenal successes of Malayalam movies efforts to build a film appreciation culture in and technically in order to mold them into good like ‘Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum,’ ‘Sudani Kerala and organized several short film festivals film-makers,” he explained. The festival will also from Nigeria’ or ‘Kumbalangi Nights.’ “The to create awareness about good cinema. provide emerging film professionals an oppor- story maybe something very common that Raveendran is the founder and festival director tunity to create a network for promoting friend- could happen in your neighborhood and char- of Kochi International Film Festival, Monsoon ship and cooperation among themselves from all acters and actors you could meet up next Cinefest and Peace International. around the GCC. door. Because, audiences are fed up with the In Kuwait, Raveendran held film workshops melodrama flicks and larger-than-life-size Interactive platform for a group of film enthusiasts offering them characters in the films,” he said. Kochi Metro Short Film Fest (KMSFF) hands-on experience in film-making and post- Raveendran did some memorable roles Middle East is his brain child which he founded production works such as scripting, film-shoot- along with leading film stars in South Indian to create an interactive platform for directors, ing and editing etc. Workshops were held in film Industry before he took a sabbatical producers, debutante film makers, technicians Salmiya and Kabd areas and the attendees were from cinema. His debutante Tamil film Oru and actors in the Middle East. It was formed in split into three different teams. Under his guid- Thalai Ragam was a big hit confirming his 2014 with renowned Indian actor ance, the teams shot four short films over a peri- stature as a promising actor in the Tamil film Padmabhooshan Mohanlal as its chairman and od of three days. industry. He acted along with Tamil heroes Raveendran as its Festival Director and CEO. Its like Kamal Hassan and Rajnikanth in several chapters have been formed in Bahrain, the UAE, blockbusters like Sagalakala Vallavan, Per Saudi Arabia and Oman, he informed. Raveendran Sollum Pillai, Ram Lakshman, Ranga, “Kochi Metro is expanding into Kuwait. And Thankamagan and Pokkiri Raja. I have initiated talks with film enthusiasts in Disabled animals given new Legendary drummer lease of life at Israeli sanctuary Hal Blaine dies at 90 al Blaine, the acclaimed drummer who played on dozens of iri, a three-legged donkey, Gary, a farm and its 5 acres (2 hectares) of green chart-toppers for artists including Frank Sinatra and The Msheep with leg braces, and Omer, pastures, stables and a barn in Moshav HBeach Boys, died Monday. He was 90 years old. “May he a blind goat, munch on some hay Olesh, an agricultural community in central rest forever on 2 and 4,” said a statement from the family of the at Israel’s only animal rescue and educa- Israel. On a visit with her 84-year-old prolific drummer, who played with “The Wrecking Crew” cohort of tional sanctuary. Founded by animal rights father, Shira Breuer, 56, said: “I’m worried venerated session players in Los Angeles. Born Harold Simon activists Adit Romano, a 52-year-old for- about the future of humanity and this place Belsky in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Blaine gained fame in the sixties mer business executive, and Meital Ben Ari, sounds like a place of hope.” for his deft touch that easily maneuvered between genres from 38, who used to work in tech, Freedom The farm’s most recent addition is Nir, a bubblegum pop to folk to R&B. His beats featured on hits includ- Farm serves as a refuge for mostly disabled five-month-old cow fitted with a prosthetic ing The Ronettes’ “Be My Baby,” Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge animals and as an educational centre for leg to replace one that was broken and Over Troubled Water,” Frank Sinatra’s “Strangers In The Night” visitors. “If you want people to open their then amputated. Freedom Farm raised and Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Are Made For Walkin’”. hearts towards these animals, we have to money for the artificial limb and medical “I’m so sad, I don’t know what to say,” tweeted Brian Wilson of bring them close,” said Romano, stroking care through an internet crowd funding The Beach Boys, the California rockers Blaine played with on a two pigs named Yossi and Omri. campaign. It costs about $1 million a year number of tracks including “Good Vibrations.” “Hal taught me a lot, Most of the nearly 240 animals at the to run the farm, which relies on contribu- and he had so much to do with our success - he was the greatest facility were raised for slaughter. Some tions and volunteer workers from Israel drummer ever,” Wilson said. “We also laughed an awful lot.” Neil were donated by farmers who chose to and abroad, including musicians - who Portnow-who heads the Recording Academy, the institution save them. Others, like Miri, who was found come and play for the animals. —Reuters behind the Grammys-hailed Blaine as “legendary,” noting the lying in a ditch with a broken leg, were artist’s 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award from the academy and abandoned. After Miri’s rescue, her leg was his contributions to “tens of thousands of songs.” “Godspeed, dear amputated. Ben Ari said children with spe- friend,” wrote Nancy Sinatra in a statement. “You made the world cial needs particularly enjoy tours of the a better place.”—AFP Drummer Hal Blaine ‘Meatless Mondays’ on horizon for New York City schools tarting in September, New San Francisco and other California York city’s 1.1 million school jurisdictions have already offered Sstudents will eat vegetarian their students a “meatless meals on “Meatless Mondays,” Monday.” A new Democratic bill in Mayor Bill de Blasio announced California even proposes offering Monday. “Cutting back on meat a state students a vegan choice. “For little will improve New Yorkers’ those who scoff at this notion, I health and reduce greenhouse gas have some simple advice: look at emissions,” Democrat de Blasio the science. Look at the data. Look said. The program, which began in at the childhood obesity. Look at 15 Brooklyn schools almost a year pre-diabetes diagnoses. Look at ago with vegetarian breakfasts and the fact that 65 percent of lunches on Mondays, will be American kids age 12-14 shows extended to the whole massive signs of early cholesterol disease,” school system. “Reducing our said Staten Island Borough appetite for meat is one of the sin- President James Oddo. “Then, per- gle biggest ways individuals can haps you will embrace the fact that reduce their environmental impact we can’t keep doing things the on our planet,” said Mark same way, including welcoming the Chambers, Director of the NYC idea of Meatless Mondays,” Oddo Mayor’s Office of Sustainability. said.—AFP Hundreds of public schools in.