NEERUNDU NILAMUNDU

NEERUNDU NILAMUNDU a film by Bala Kailasam

The word ‘reforms’ with respect to Government functioning is almost always understood only in its economic context as disinvestment and privatization. Very rarely it is understood as the reform of the functioning of the individuals within the Government, and a change in the form and style of Governance. It is taken for granted that such a mission is impossible!

This film is about a group of engineers working in the water sector in Tamilnadu who are engaged in such a mission. The film traces their journey to 2003; how it started in the ‘The Tamilnadu Water Supply and Drainage Board (TWAD)’ and showcases exemplary stories of individual transformation leading to institutional transformation. The narration is from the point of view of an engineer from the Agricultural Department (AED) undergoing training by a couple of TWAD engineers who share their experience with unbelievable passion.

About the Director:

B. Kailasam, son of Mr. K. Balachander, is an Engineering graduate from the Madras University, trained in Film and Broadcasting at the University of Iowa, USA. His thesis project The Twice Discriminated (1987) was an analysis of the state of Dalit Christians of Tamilnadu. On his return to India he worked in various capacities as Director, Script Writer, Editor and Sound Recordist for several films and videos. His 1990 documentary on the art of Temple architecture and sculpture called Vaastu Marabu won the Best Film on Art and Culture at the 38th National Film Festival 1991. In 1992, he produced and designed the sound of Veli, an imagistic ode to the river Cauvery.