At a time when the decision to shut government-run schools for want of students has drawn flak, a film on a State-run school in a border district will be hitting 100 screens on Friday. Incidentally, the title of the film is one of the longest ever for any Kannada film.
Sarkari Hiriya Prathamika Shale, Kasaragodu, Koduge: Ramanna Rai by Rishab Shetty, starring veteran actor Ananth Nag, throws light on the plight of Kannada-medium schools, especially in areas bordering Karnataka.
Rishab Shetty of Kirik Party fame says that the inspiration for the film came from newspaper reports on the closure of schools because of poor attendance. “I wanted to tell the story of my own school at Keradi. The board of the school was sponsored by Ramanna Shetty,” he says.
The theme of the film is backed by statistics, which show a steady decline in enrolment in government schools over the years. The number went down from 54,53,725 in 2010-11 to 46,50,349 in 2016-17. The same period has seen a steady increase in the number of admissions in private schools, from 28,76,667 to 33,28,408.
The film touches upon alleged imposition of Malayalam in Kannada schools in Kasaragod district in Kerala, which led to protests in recent times.
“The making of this film has been like going down memory lane,” says Rishab. Two major characters in the film are based on the experience of Rishab and his brother.
For actor Ananth Nag too, the film is like retelling his own story. He was a young boy when Kasaragod was included in Kerala. His role is vital in the fight of students to save a Kannada-medium school.