The ‘Paakashala Praveena,’ Sihi Kahi Chandru, and his wife, Sihi Kahi Geetha, were present to launch the teaser of ‘Paatashala,’ directed by Heddur Manjunath, on Wednesday evening at Kalavidara Bhavana. Heddur Manjunath is the producer of this film, which captures the lives of children from the past.
It was through the Final Cut Productions of Sihi Kahi Chandru and Geetha that Heddur Manjunath began his journey. The proud couple lauded Manjunath’s effort and sincerity and wished him good luck with the film.
Heddur Manjunath, who worked on the Parvathi Parameshwara television serial under Final Cut Productions for over 1,000 episodes, later collaborated on Manjina Hani with Crazy Star V. Ravichandran. He then moved on to work with Ashok Kashyap and Anand P. Raju, gaining experience in various areas of filmmaking. For his third film (the earlier two being Gap Alli Ondu and Omini), he invested his earnings to depict the lives of children from the 80s and 90s. The film, Paatashala, explores the bond between teachers and students, along with other emotions. Set against the backdrop of Thirthahalli, the film involved a workshop with 450 children. “I always felt the need to make a meaningful film before my time on this earth ends,” he said, becoming slightly emotional.
Former MLA N.L. Narendra Babu, H.S. Raghavendra Shetty, Santosh Kumar Shetty, Vijay Shetty, “Kerabete” fame Gowri Shankar, Ravindra Singh, and others were present as chief guests.
“The role of ‘Thuthuri’ in the serial Parvathi Parameshwara brought me fame. Now, my wife Preethi and I have produced this film under the banner of ‘MS SQUARE MOVIES.’ More than ten friends have co-produced this film. Most of the shooting took place in Thirthahalli Taluk. Over forty children acted in the film. The children were trained before the shooting began, and they come from in and around Thirthahalli,” shared Manjunath.
Veteran actors such as Balaji Manohar, Sudhakar Bannanje, Kiran Nayak, Prashanth, and others have also acted in the film. The storyline revolves around the relationship between teachers and children in the 80s and 90s. The shooting is nearly complete, and the dubbing process is also nearing its end. Director Heddur Manjunath Shetty revealed that the film is planned for release before the summer vacation. The tagline for Paatashala is “Read or Run.”
