Remembering a luminary
P.K. AJITH KUMAR, The Hindu ‘Krishna Menon: A Forgotten Luminary,’ a documentary on V.K. Krishna Menon, was premiered in Kozhikode. Fittingly so, for Krishna Menon, the former statesman and diplomat extraordinaire, remains one of the greatest sons of Kozhikode. “The film’s international premiere was in London,” says director R. Sarath. The documentary focusses more on Menon’s life in London, which played a significant part in shaping his personality and enduring relationship with Jawaharlal Nehru. Lesser known facts like his role in co-founding Penguin Books and being the founding editor of its non-fiction series have also been featured. The 25-minute documentary, produced by Film London and Shelly Suman Productions, contains some rare clippings, including that of Krishna Menon’s famous speech at the United Nations (U.N.) in 1957 (the eight-hour speech on Kashmir still remains the longest ever speech at the U.N.). It includes stills of Krishna Menon with great minds like Albert Einstein, Robert Frost and Aldous Huxley. Krishna Menon’s relatives and Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer reminisce about the statesman. Sarath says he was always fascinated by Krishna Menon. “History is one of my favourite subjects and I feel Krishna Menon is a historical figure who has not got his due even in Kerala. He is revered a lot more in London, I found out. People associated with him and organisations like the BBC were extremely helpful. “While doing research for the film in the United Kingdom (U.K.), I found out how much goodwill Krishna Menon enjoyed there. A U.S.-based doctor Frederic Mosseri, when he came to know that I was making a film on Krishna Menon, gifted me the Rolls Royce car that Krishna Menon had used during his days as the High Commissioner in London. The doctor’s father had bought the car from Krishna Menon; that car, in fact, was presented to Krishna Menon by Nehru, who was the Prime Minister then,” says Sarath. Sarath points out that he also got a lot of help from people like A. Jayathilak, District Collector, Kozhikode, who has collected a huge amount of material on Krishna Menon. Sarath plans to screen the film in more centres. “This documentary is actually a prelude to a feature film in English on the life of Krishna Menon, titled ‘Krishna.’ The film has a huge star cast,” he adds. Watch the documentary on youtube below www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ujuCm8D40o
