In the recently announced 67th National Film Awards, child actor Naga Vishal bagged the award for the Best Child Artist for Tamil drama 'KD Engira Karuppu Durai'. Directed by Madhumita Sundararaman, the film revolves around the relationship between an 80-year-old man (Mu Ramaswamy) and an 8-year-old boy (Naga Vishal). On being recognised at national level, the young actor says it was an unexpected and happy surprise for him to receive the honour.
"This is a totally unexpected and overwhelming honour. The filming experience was so easy, and we were all one family on set. Madhumita Maam – my director – was like my elder sister. To get an honor like this at a national level is really something I wasn’t prepared for, and my family and friends are so happy and proud of me today," said an elated Naga Vishal.
Directed by Madhumita Sundararaman and produced by the Yoodlee Films banner, the Tamil film spoke a universal language of love and finding your self-worth through the deeply connected stories of a septuagenarian and a young orphan. 80-year-old Karuppudurai (KD) wakes up from a coma only to overhear his family planning to euthanise him. He does the most natural thing by running away from his village, only to stumble into the life of 8-year-old Kutty. As they set on a journey together, with the mission to fulfil KD’s bucket list, humorously navigating through their problems, valuable life lessons are imparted by Kutty to his much senior friend, forming the unlikeliest of friendships. The film addressed important issues such as social mores and how family ties get played within that, and about finding beauty in the ordinary, but never forgets to entertain.
On 'KD Engira Karuppu Durai' being recognised at the 67th National Film Awards, director Madhumita said, "To get this kind of recognition, especially from the government, means a lot to all of us. Sometimes I forget that he is a child, especially when he speaks about his responsibility towards the betterment of his family. Nagavishal brought life to Kutty, and deserves all these accolades and more. His win is a win for each one of my crew and cast who worked hard for KD to be what it is today. We are all so overwhelmed by the love that the audience have shown our film. Humbled and grateful.”
Recalling Talha Arshad Reshi winning the National Award for Hamid in the same category, Siddharth Anand Kumar, VP Films & Events at Saregama India, congratulated the team of KD saying, a child's perspective always brings a new dimension to a film.
