Andhra Pradesh - Visakhapatnam   

Movies make them to play real heroes of society

VISAKHAPATNAM: Flashy clothes, mind-boggling gizmos, fast bikes, weekend parties and innovative lingo are not all that define a college student. In this era where western culture is seeping into the youth arena swiftly and the ultimate goal of every youth is to ‘pack your sack for the land of opportunities’, there are a few who still think of doing something for the country. They may not go strictly by the Gandhian thoughts and philosophy and would not like to be branded as hardcore patriots but have definitely drawn some inspiration from a few films like Chak De India, Swades and Rang De Basanti.

Films not only continue to be the most popular medium of entertainment but also seem to play an influencing factor.

“The heroes do play a role in motivating us but ultimately it is the theme of the movies that touched our hearts and impelled us to do something for society,” says a student of Andhra Medical College.

Shekhar, a student of fourth year chemical engineering, was inspired by Swades to do something for the street children. How to start was the question that bothered him for about a year and he finally took the celluloid route. He procured a handycam and took to the roads. After six months of shooting at various locations he produced a 20-minute documentary on street children and named it as ‘Street dairy’. He now intends to showcase his film at various platforms and kindle a spark among the audience.

“During the six months I was exposed to various vagaries that these little children face in life. Hopeless and destitute these children are exposed to all types of abuse, right from drugs to physical abuse. Some turn criminals, a few are subjected to hard child labour and the most unfortunate are the girls who are exposed to the flesh trade at a very tender age. My goal is to set up an orphanage that would have the best of facilities. Even they deserve a better life,” says he.

Though he plans to go to the US for his MS degree and probably extend his stay till the completion of his Ph. D., he intends to build his team on the US soil with the help of his film to fulfil his dreams.

The bug has also bitten Padma Neha Reddy, an MBA student. She has joined the Rotract movement with a team of over a dozen, mostly comprising her college mates, to take part in the social movement. Her team is now thinking of adopting an orphanage for the cause. She and her team believe that youth power can change the world of the less fortunate.

Taking the youth power a little ahead, the students of Andhra Medical College have started an NGO, SABDA (Student Association for Blood Donation of Andhra Medical College) last year. The organisation that started with 10 volunteers has already got over 50 this year. The group comprises students from all the five years, including the freshers. The idea is to work throughout the year in batches so that the academic is not hampered and to motivate the students of other colleges to come forward and donate blood voluntarily. “There should be no shortage of blood. None should go disappointed for want of quantity or money. Blood is a life saver and even the poorest man should have access to it free of cost. Our goal is to build a network of over 50,000 students,” says Sameer Nandan.

Last year the group has collected over 900 units of blood and this year they have set the target even steeper.

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