 How
many of us dare to drink deep of life, to fight with passion
for what we believe in, to stand by our principles? It demands
uncommon courage and Suresh Hebliker, actor, director, environmentalist,
is one such rare individual.
Known for his penchant for directing offbeat movies, some of
his well-known films are Aparichita, Rishya Shrunga, Usha
Kiran, Kadina Benki and Kankana. Kadina
Benki won the Best Director national award and Usha
Kiran the Fimfare Award. Besides directing, he has also
acted in many plays and films. Kannada movie regulars remember
with nostalgia Hebliker's detective films like Aale Mane,
Aagantuka and Aparachita.
He has given invited screenings of his films abroad. He has
also directed several documentaries on the ecology of Western
Ghats, the solar energy, the socio-cultural aspects of Dharwad
(which won the state's best documentary award), development
of waste land and AIDS. He is the Vice Chairman of the Indian
Society for Environmental Studies. Heblikar's
persona - that of an environmentalist, his involvement with
Eco-Watch and his special liking for psychology has led him
a long way.
Speaking to bangalorebest.com, he expressed his deep
concern for conservation of the environment, his passion for
making offbeat art films and his transition from film personality
to an ecologist.
On his involvement with 'Eco-Watch' "It is a
centre which I started four years ago to sensitize people in
general on environmental issues. Our greed for material wealth
has brought us close to environmental catastrophe."
On his upcoming environmental projects "There
are a lot of burning issues like the lakes. People should be
made aware of the fact that there is a scarcity of drinking
water and thus it should be preserved. I have even made a three-minute
film on water conservation, which was shown on a Kannada channel
and has become very popular also. We spend Rs 30 crores to get
water from river Cauvery, whereas many lakes in Bangalore with
drinking water are not being used properly for this purpose."
 On
his transition from mainstream cinema to an environmentalist
"I cannot relate myself to films now, as films made
now are all meaningless, and they try to copy Hindi films. I
was always associated with the environment since my childhood
in Dharwad, where I was a dreamer and realized that our country
was on the verge of a crisis."
On his son Akshay Hebliker "He has been inspired
by me and has done his Environmental Engineering to help me
and the entire country to be eco-friendly and conscious. He
is an active member of Eco-Watch."
How environment conscious is the present generation? "Yes,
the present generation is environment conscious, especially
the educated class. And how much have I succeeded in spreading
the word around is up to people to judge. We must make use of
science and technology for environment protection."
On his famous project to save the Western Ghats "
It is one of the greatest bio-diverse regions in the world.
It is being destroyed and I plan to organize some kind of event
to draw people's attention to this. If you want to save the
environment, you will have to first save people's culture. Ninety
per cent of the people in this country have made money through
destruction of the environment. All growth and development is
done at the cost of the environment. Unlimited wants are created
in the minds of poor people through movies and advertisements,
but there are no means to satisfy their hunger and demands.
That is why Bangalore, the once peaceful city, has been facing
so many unwanted problems."
 On
making tourism eco-friendly "Yes, this is the only way
to conserve the environment. Bangalore could have been the 'Holland
of India' if the felling of trees to put up shopping complexes
and industries had been curtailed. For this, we need very strong
willed politicians to look into the matter and take care of
it."
On his 'secret' new movie project "I am planning
to make a new film with the Second World War as a backdrop.
It is the true story of my paternal uncle who fell in love with
a Greek woman and died during the war. He, a staunch Hindu,
wrote back to my father about his love and his plans of getting
married to his 'lady love'. For this purpose, I am going to
Greece soon in search of the same woman. It is my profound desire
to make this film and I hope to succeed in that. If good roles
come my way, I would love to do them."
The umbilical cord of acting has not snapped off yet for this
passionate, caring patriot, Suresh Hebliker, who dreams of a
cleaner and greener tomorrow. There is an urgent need to protect
our planet from man's thoughtless ways. Let us join hands with
Suresh Hebliker for a better environment.
- Aditi Kumar
Photographs by Somashekar D P |
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