When every drop of water counts

KOCHI: Water shortage is a major problem that most of the states are facing this summer and Kerala is not an exception. Even after the disastrous floods, the lakes and rivers of the state have dried up. Director Stajan VJ has tried to convey the need to conserve water through his short film Rain of Life. The film was released on YouTube on March 22 as part of the World Water Day by actress Priyamani.

This is Stajan's first short film and he says, " Even the heirship to a kingdom is worthless when it is weighed against a drop of water." The short film tries to convey the value of water and the need for conserving every drop.

Through this 6-minute short film, Stajan conveys a message that in areas where water is abundant, nobody values it. The director wants to tell viewers that if water management techniques such as rainwater harvesting are followed, then these situations can be overcome. He says, “ I wanted to do a short film based on some major issues. This is how I thought of doing a film on water conservation.”

The short film begins with a young couple enjoying the beauty of nature in a helicopter. Their helicopter crashes in a deserted place in Kenya where they can't find a single drop of water. While desperately searching for water, they come across a tribal man with a vessel of water. They are in a situation where they are ready to pay the tribal man anything to quench their thirst but he is not ready to give them any. The  film shows the difficulties the couple has to go through to get a few drops of water.

Produced by Seejo Ponnore, Rain of Life's characters are foreigners who have donned the roles of the young couple and the tribal man. The film is shot in the outskirts of Rajasthan around 70 km away from the popular tourist spots.

Saviour Mars who played the role of the tribal man is a theatre artist. Ekaterina Kabanova and Taha Salahasaanas who played the roles of the lady and the pilot were selected through an agency 'Impulse'.
Stajan has done over 200 promotional videos and runs his own ad film production company Burning Lights in Kochi. Presently, he is working on a feature film directed by Sreenivasan.
“I wish to screen this short film across the world so that people find ways to conserve water,” he said.