Innocent is no more
As with any bereavement, when I think of Innocent now, the first thing I feel is sadness. In the next moment, his bursts of laughter and not only sadness but also memories of laughter come through. There is a part of the impact that the man left on us deeply. When talking about my personal relationship with Innocent, I would like to remove the word ‘like’ from the adjective ‘like a friend, guide and elder brother’. Not like..he was all of the above to me.
The first time I saw Innocent was in the tea shop scene in the movie ‘Nell’. There was a time when I was a film buff who would listen to even those who appeared in small roles and would find out who they were. When I was scouting for roles, I had noticed Innocent who had appeared in small roles in ‘Nrithashala’ and ‘Jesusy’, wondering ‘who is this?’ The name ‘Innocent’ itself was a rarity then.. even today. Innocent is seen in person for the first time after coming to the cinema. Innocent and his friend David Kachapalli were the producers of Nedumudi Venu’s film ‘Vitaparajum Sedee..’. The name of the banner was Shatru Films. I was interested in the new filmmakers of that time. I also wanted to act in their films. Innocent’s Shattrufilms focused on parallel films rather than commercially successful films. Thus he met Innocent and it grew into a great friendship. It was through this relationship that Shatru Films’ film ‘Lekha Kete Matam Oru Flash Back’ came to me. KG George was the director. I had the role of the hero Premsagar in Katha, which is the background of the film. Then Mohan, Innocent and Sreenivasan all discussed and evolved into the film ‘Oru Katha Oru Nunakatha’. My friendship with Innocent became stronger through this film in which I played the role of Professor Mohandas.
As a relatively junior, I became a spectator and listener in the friendship groups of Innocent and others. Slowly I started getting better roles. I played the role of Anirudhan, a salesman in John Paul’s screenplay, in which I and Mohanlal played the lead roles. I remembered Innocent’s name when I was thinking about who would play the role of Lonapanchetan, a merchant from Thrissur. Innocent was at the forefront when the Amma organization was formed in 1995. Later, when the governing body was reconstituted, his name was proposed for the post of president. Everyone had a calculation that when there were serious issues and situations, Innocent would be able to handle it simply and it would be a defense for the organization.
Innocent would make up stories about everyone. The story was first told to the person about whom the story was made. He would tell the story to others only if he burst out laughing. The protagonists change depending on the listener. When talking to me, Lal will be the central character and when talking to Mohanlal, I will be the central character. He is often the main character in Innocent’s stories. Innocent was not in the habit of slandering anyone, except always to amuse us. When we evaluate him as an actor, we realize how many characters only Innocent can do. And so many things we’ve done together…occasionally I remember him unnecessarily. Will call then. I called Innocent during the penultimate hospitalization too….
When he left, we lost a person, an actor, a member of society, a friend of society.
I have missed so many people. One cannot be many. He can only be. But Innocent was able to live and share friendships as many other than Innocent. That is why such a large crowd came to see him off. Even though there may be groaning inside, let the memories of him fill our lips or mind with laughter… let us spread happiness… and beyond that, what can a man who laughed in the cancer ward earn…!