Immersed in Van Gogh

KOCHI: A short film based on Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh, by Thiruvananthapuram native Madhu VR, has claimed 196 international awards. The eight-minute short titled ‘Death Offers Life’ has till date garnered more than 400 awards in national and international categories and is still in the pursuit of claiming more- a rare fete for a short film. 

The short is conceived from Madhu VR’s book ‘Glimpses of Life through Cobweb’, a compendium of poems and short stories. The author, who is an accountant working at AG’s office is also the scriptwriter of the film. Madhu had recently applied to the Limca Book of Records.

Though the deeply troubled life of Van Gogh has been the subject of many movies, this time the plot takes a different turn. The fictionalised version of Vincent starts off from his death bed, where he confronts Death. 

The short chronicles the last moments of artist Vincent Van Gogh’s life where Van Gogh talks to Death. Death has been personified in the short and Vincent engages in a dialogue with him.

Madhu talks about his short film which is making waves in the festival circuit. “Vincent’s life has been one fraught with poverty and insanity. His mind was like his painting ‘The Starry Night’, one with no control. He was an unaccepted artist and it was only after his death that it all changed. I could relate to the artist on so many levels and maybe that intrigued me to make a film about him. If someone wrote a book on Vincent’s life, this is how the last chapter of the book will be. So in that essence, this is the last chapter of a book that never happened,” says Madhu.

The short is laced with poignant moments and philosophical conversations that take place between Vincent and Death. The film is directed by Saheer Abbas and was released under the banner of NANR Films. Rashin Khan plays the role of Vincent while Anuroop Thekkumkadan plays Death. The cinematography is by Noushad Shereef. Madhu has also applied for the short’s screening at the International Documentary and Short Film Festival (IDSFFK) (IDSFFK). The writer has plans of sending the film even to the Oscars.