Personal plans in Feb and March

Lots of people have been calling up to check if I am available over the weekends or for short trips. So here is the schedule. I am off to Sabarimala on the 12,13,14,15 of Feb. There is a planned European trip in Feb and March. I continue to be available through social media. :)

Hectic week at office and at the PK project.

A hectic week at office. Have been juggling work and Punykoti. Can't beleive that animatics of one full act is now close to being completed. We have a first glimpse of the colour concepts for the movie and all of the things I see are both exciting and intimidating.

The drive to collect 20 lakhs is also gaining a lot of attention. Nearing 2000 views in a week and 20 shares. Continue to support.

After many people asked me the trick of managing office and the project together, I have started maintaining a physical dairy (much easier) to pull out and write :). And already in the last 20 odd days, it is filled with 200 odd items. But it is a great aid to keep track of several things at the same time.

Promise to be more meticulous from next week. Exciting times!

For Profit or For Passion

Why make a Sanskrit animated movie? Why take on a difficult and ambitious project like this? Why risk your reputation and put others into trouble as well?...goes the questions when I share about making Punyakoti.

My friend Badri aswered this beautifully, when he said, I am not sure if Punyakoti is a 'For Profit' project, it surely is a 'For Passion' project.

I am reminded of Chamu Krishnamurthy's words when he said, Ganga starts as a small stream up in the Himalayas but it takes the others rivers as it goes along without losing its own character, and ends up as the Ganga Sagaram when it reaches the Ocean. To me, Punyakoti project is like that. It is a long and arduous journey, but it is powered by passion.

I believe I am just a 'nimitham' - a medium for it to happen.

A Fulfilling January

A concept art from one of the animatics that is in progress

Was traveling last week and could not update. January has been a action packed month. Here is the action on the ground.

1. Rough animtics of almost 12 of the 31 scenes is in progress. A huge jump from the 5 which started last month. More and more people are now actively involved in the project from around India. And more are joining every week.
2. Presented the project and prospects to Sri. Ram Vaidya, who is reaching out to the Sanskrit lovers in the UK and Europe. His words that we are just 'nimithams' (mediums) made me feel inspired. Great work happen through us and not because of us. Blessed by the association of such selfless evangelists. 
3. Dr. Srinivas's enthusiasm is infectious. He has agreed to endorse the movie among his friends.
4. We started a 'I Support Punyakoti' campaign that has received a good reception - close to a 1000 pageviews. More testimonials are coming in the coming weeks.
5. We have a law firm supporting the project now. We are thankful to them for coming on board.
6. We had the first Punyakoti workshop in Kochi on the 18th that had 12 attendees working on various aspects of the movie. 5 others could not make it. There is great enthusiasm among them. I met many of the people who are working on my project for the first time!
7. Have been fortunate to have the leading contemporary writer and poet of Kerala work on the dialogues and song sequences of the movie. His endorsement means a lot to me.
8. The programmers are putting in the paypal button in the contribute page that will help contributors to send their contributions easily. It should be done by next week.
9. In February, we should have the dummy dubbing and scratch music ready.
10. I am confident that we can complete the animatics of the movie by April '15.

The first concept art received for Punyakoti in 2015

Thanks Samir

Tag Line for Puppetica

After a long search for what Puppetica Media should stand for, we found an apt line given by Jagadguru, the saint of Kanchi - which extolls the virtues of friendship and harmony. Puppetica Media will stand for "Shreya Booyaath Sakala Janaanaam - Let all experience bliss". Feeling blessed.

More good news in the last weeks of 2014

One of the most exciting years in my life personally and for those 100s who are supporting one of the unique projects - a crowdsourced Sanskrit animated feature film. What started as a dream in early 2014 has been developed into a script and storyboard. With support from the best minds and institutions around the world. I could not have asked for more.

It has been a week of joy and work as more teams experessed their support for the movie. What is keeping us busy? A feature in Kannada press, the original language in which the folksong became popular. And an interview with the Independent Film Makers group in Chennai. More friends pledging support for the movie. And more support from my mentors. We now have someone to advise on legal issues. And a dynamic portion of the website is getting coded this week. Work on animatics for Act 3 is moving at a good pace. Each passing day brings more good news and faith. Collectively, one shot at a time, we will make this happen.

I may squeeze in a trip to Kerala to meet the studios there. The first month of 2015 is going to be hectic as well. I am visiting London and there is a likely trip to Bhubaneswar as well. February may see another workshop on Punyakoti in Chennai and Bangalore. We will keep you posted.