I was here to learn about films but SCMC had much more in store
Cinema is my passion. After two years of dealing with science – fighting with benzene and thermodynamics, and all that my brain could never grasp – I was certain that there is nothing else I would rather do than be a part of films.
During the first year at Symbiosis Centre for Media & Communication, it was a confusing world to me. Talented people would get into teams to work on films. I made my way around college slowly, making a few but good friends. I was, as always, far too anxious. I did enjoy college very much, but my train was still in a tunnel, not knowing where it’s headed.
I was here to learn about films but SCMC had much more in store. It taught me that we shouldn’t be restricted to just how a film is made. We must also learn the “why” of it. Prof. Sagar Kamath unveiled the curtains to the other side of History. Prof. A. F. Mathew’s lectures gave a broader view of society’s power structures. The screenings showcased unconventional cinema that I would have never been exposed to if it were not for SCMC.
Then I went on to do my first film project- Kandh De Paar or 1984, as it was called during the shoot. Directed by my senior Garima Pura, I got to work with a team as passionate about the story as she. There were no fixed rules on the set. We exchanged roles, went onto meticulous planning, sorting out logistics – all the fun of filmmaking. She even went onto get professional actors and directed them on the set. None of us felt we were merely working for a student film.
This project helped me get back on my feet and get back on the track I wanted to be on. I learnt to take more opportunities that came my way and make the most of them. I went on to find internships at places I had never been to. College pushed me beyond the confining walls of self-doubt. This journey has been no less than a self-discovery and I feel humbled by all that I learnt after I opened the shut doors of my thoughts.
Article by: Rahul Krishnan (Batch of 2018)
Photograph by: Rahul Krishnan (Batch of 2018)
