On November 13th , as Diwali tattoos the country from head to toe in a blazing design of golden flickering flames, Amrita TV joins in the festivities with a chart of programmes that punctures the day with the indelible ink of entertainment.
Lighting the fuse on the day’s programmes to make it fizzle to life, is an interview with Tamil actor Srikanth at 9 am, for whom this is a particularly radiant Diwali, both on the professional and personal front. A disciplined actor on the look out for a chance to push the frontiers of his acting talent, he finds Mollywood with its scintillating themes and realistic treatment, very refreshing. He discusses ‘Parthiban Kanavu’, an illuminating experience of his acting life that fetched him a State Award; the cracking fun he had on the sets of Sankar’s comedy ‘Nanban’; reveals that his cinematic dreams rocketed skyward while watching his father, a theatre artiste on stage; looks back at the struggle to find a footing in films during which he supported himself by taking up odd jobs, including filling in as a petrol pump assistant.
Igniting the small screen with his presence and putting more shine into India’s ‘brightest’ festival at 12 noon is superstar Mammootty in Face To Face With Mammootty, a sunny chat session with the cast and crew of his brand new flick, ‘Face To Face’. Directed by V.M Vinu, it is an investigative thriller boasting of a glittering star cast that includes Roma Asrani, Ragini Dwivedi, Vineeth Kumar,Siddique, Kalabhavan Mani etc.
Setting a match to our curiosity, amidst the occasional staccato burst of crackers rending the air, comes the TV premiere of Nadabrahmam at 2 pm which introduced Kaushik Babu, who set the screens ablaze as Sri Ayyappan in a mega serial of the same name. Kaushik who appears in a double role, proves that he has a flare for acting in his debut film and is cast opposite newcomer Mahalekshmi, along with Jagathy Sreekumar, Sai Kumar etc.
At 7 pm, when the diyas which bring the glow of joy to every street ,appears to strew the countryside with a cache of jewels, Super Dancer Junior-5 presents a brace of polished Diwali -themed dances, from Boney gifted choreographer; Mohiniyattom performance by Deepa Kartha, famed dance proponent and classical moves from Malavika, Bhagyalekshmi, Riddhima, all Super Dancer finalists.
When finally the firecrackers spray the night sky with acrylic hues that explode into a million sparks of brilliance, another Diwali would cascade down in a trail of bright specks and vanish
into the cinders of our consciousness.
Smitha Sivaji,
Amrita TV