Book on Murali to be distributed to schools

KOZHIKODE: Memories of actor Bharat Murali will be brought to life on Monday when copies of a book about him will be distributed to all schools within the Feroke panchayat. This will be the first phase of plans to distribute it in all the schools in the district, the organisers said. The book titled ‘Bharat Murali - The Holy Actor’ has been compiled by Bhanuprakash and features articles about Murali written by luminaries from creative and political fields including M T Vasudevan Nair, Mohanlal, Mammootty, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Pinarayi Vijayan, Lohithadas and M A Baby. The book also contains excerpts of the writings of the actor himself and transcripts of his conversations with Naseeruddin Shah.  A total of 48 books will be distributed to all school libraries in the Panchayat and the programme will be funded partly by the Panchayat and partly by external organisations like the alumni associations of various schools and other private parties. “Murali was not just an actor but a social worker as well, and a lot of lessons can be learned from his life. He is also unique as he is one of the few people who achieved equally laudable success in both the film and theatre fields. Our aim is to introduce the younger generations to him and his works,” said Feroke Panchayat President V Sarasu.Bhanuprakash, who compiled and edited the work, said that the book was the product of extensive work done over a period of more than four years. “We began planning for the book while Murali was still alive and a promotional brochure was released by Mohanlal at a function attended by the actor himself. But then his unfortunate demise occurred and the tone of the book changed,” he said. The book was finally brought out after the active involvement of prominent figures such as M K Muneer and M A Baby, said Bhanuprakash. He also said that plans to distribute the book in all schools of the district were progressing.