Art is his life, Creativity his lifeblood. This is Prakash Babu, an inborn artist and an illustrator with the Times of India, Bangalore. He is a product of the world famous Santi Niketan and a Diploma holder in Film Appreciation from the Pune Film Institute, who always nurtured a dream of the silver-screen. Prakash Babu handles the weekly column, 'Sunday Punch,' in TOI and also contributes regularly to parallel magazines like the Sanjaya and Sankula.

Babu hails from Chitradurga, the historical city of forts and is the winner of the Karnataka Lalit Kala Academy Award for his painting in 1995. He speaks to bangalorebest.com about his debut on silver screen - "Afternoon Song".

Excerpts from a conversation with the artist

What was your inspiration for making the movie 'Afternoon Song'?

I wanted to be filmmaker since my childhood. The idea of this film was in my mind for a long time. Then, whereever I did an exhibition of paintings or sculptures, I realized that the public just see the picture and go off. So I always wanted to portray my ideas on a more interactive medium, which people sit and watch.

How did you choose the story of the film?

The idea has been on my mind for thepast five years now as different fragments. It is totally a subjective matter and I just joined it. The concept is same as painting a portrait.

What were the criteria for selecting the actors? Was it very difficult?

Actors are not important in my movie. Basically the idea is important and how we portray the character. Most of the actors in the movie 'Afternoon song' were my friends.

How did the early days in Santi Niketan influence your interest in the movies?

In Santi Niketan we had a film club, which featured good films and documentaries, where I understood more about films and that really inspired me. Then I did a Film Appreciation course from the Pune Film Institute.

As a moviemaker what did you want to convey to your audience and what did you expect from them?

Actually there are only a particular group of people interested in these kind of movies. Its just like publishing a book; everybody is not interested in all kinds of fiction. For me its totally a thing of passion. Due to the emergence of latest technologies, filmmaking has been rendered cheaper, enabling filmmakers to convey their messages in an easier manner than before.

Do you have other plans for producing a film in the near future?

Yes, but not immediately, I have so many ideas in my mind, but there are financial constraints.

Keeping in mind the potential commercial cinema holds, do you think parellel cinema can survive?

For a parallel moviemaker it is not that easy to survive. Especially in Karnataka people are not at all interested in these kind of movies compared to other states. I was surprised to see the public response in Kerala when I went there for the Film Festival conducted by "Nottam." 1960s and '70s were the golden age of art movies and now, I believe, the trend is coming back.

Interview by: Smitha Paulson Picture Courtesy: Prakash Babu

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