Kanimozhi embarks on documentary film on MK

Chennai, May 27 (UNI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's poet-daughter Kanimozhi had always shunned politics, particularly the arc lights that accompanied them.

But her secret admiration of her illustrious father's political acumen and stature in Dravidian politics, besides his literary skills which cut a different path in the contemporary Tamil literary world, spurred her on to a project of her lifetime -- making a political documentary on the life and times of her father, 83-year-old DMK patriarch and one of India's notable and senior most politician.

A few years back Ms Kanimozhi happened to watch a documentary on her father. ''I don't remember who made it. But it was so pathetically made that I felt strongly that he deserved better,'' she recalled.

Thus began the first inspiration in her to make a film for a man ''who had powerful influence on Tamil society and literature for decades.'' Taking after her father with her skill for writing poetry, Ms Kanimozhi had also keenly followed her father's works - be it as a script writer, using films to permeate the society with powerful Dravidian propaganda, a literateur or even as an influential author of some historical political scripts.

She called up her friend, Alphonse Roy, the award winning wildlife photographer-cum-videographer who instinctively moved along with her in the project.

During the run up to the 2004 Lok Sabha elections in May, Ms Kanimozhi and Mr Roy shot their first footage of their two-hour documentary.

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