Hope stars
SHOBA NAIR
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`Santhwanam' comes in the form of a star who brightens the day of many a person in need of a kind word or gesture.
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FOR REAL: Meera Jasmine in an episode of `Santhwanam.'
This is a programme with a difference. There is no storyline, comedy, suspense or foot-tapping music to draw you to the television and yet `Santhwanam' on Amrita TV has managed to carve a niche for itself in the minds of viewers.
Its captivating signature song by Anitha Suresh and Rahul Raj strikes an instant chord, while Mochita's lyrics captures the gist of the programme that tugs at the heart strings of all without turning into a maudlin tearjerker.
Reality bytes
The programmes is a healthy dose of reality bytes. Stars, young and old, are taken to old homes, orphanages, hospitals and so on to interact with the residents there. Meera Jasmine, Kavya, Jayasurya, Bhavana, KPAC Lalitha, Valsala Menon, Captain Raju, and Kalpana have participated in this programme that opened new vistas for many of them.
"A channel should carry good bonding programmes, besides the popular revenue-making rounds. `Santhwanam' is indeed a unique programme that focusses on the finer aspects of sensitivity. The stars offer compassion and love. It is a wonderful change in the mundane routine in several institutions," says Shyamaprasad, programme chief of Amritha channel. The ill and the neglected share their pent-up emotions with these special guests. And for the viewers, it is a different world altogether. Many viewers reach out with tokens of love and donations.
According to Regi Syne, producer director of this programme, "This programme has helped create awareness about many social problems faced by certain sections in our society. It has also touched the philanthropist in many of us."
For instance, an episode on Adarsh Rehabilitation Center at Thripunithara resulted in 62 calls to the centre, which were made by parents of those affected by cerebral palsy. After his visit to the Deaf and Dumb School in Thiruvananthapuram, magician Gopinath Muthucad organised a fund-raising programme for the school. For Sathyan Anthikadu, director of `Manasinakkare,' which sensitively depicted the alienation experienced by senior citizens, his visit to St. Josephs Old Age Home at Pullezhi, was an eye-opener. As Sathyan puts it, "a small touch, a kind word that is what these inmates expect more than material help.''
And `Santhwanam' does that. A little time set apart for those who have been sidelined from the mainstream of life.
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