'KERALA FLOODS ARE AS BAD AS PARTITION'

As his home state grapples with floods, sound designer Resul Pookutty asks us to stay united in this tragedy

As Kerala faces the worst floods in its history, we see humanity break barriers to help those devastated by the calamity. A large number of Bollywood celebs also immediately rose to the occasion and actively took part in rehabilitation missions. Academy Awardwinning sound designer Resul Pookutty also sprang into action to mobilise help for his home state. On Wednesday, Pookutty met the Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, to discuss plans for the state. “The meeting with the CM went very well,” he tells us on phone from Kerala. Resul shares that the government of Kerala has urged actors to meet flood-hit families. “When someone like Mammootty and Mohanlal comfort people, it creates an impact,” he says.

The sound designer is proud that the film fraternity set a heartwarming example of solidarity. “I contacted Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Sidharth Roy Kapur, Sonam Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Vidhu Vinod Chopra. All of them helped instantly. Sushant Singh Rajput was a big sport. Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Akshay Kumar also sent help. Bachchan sir went out of his way and packed clothes and cartons of stuff, while Alia sent food and clothes. I felt that Incredible India is not just a tourism tagline, it’s the true spirit of India,” he says.

Pookutty says that Kerala is facing a catastrophe that reminds one of the 1947 Partition. “This is the time when epidemics spread. People are going back to their house, but there are dead bodies and dead animals. People lost their documents. It’s like what happened during the Partition. To put a list of passports, visas, property papers, work IDs is a huge task,” he says.

In this hour of distress, a few hate mongers tried to disturb peace, but Pookutty asks us to stay unaffected. “Let’s ignore negativity. There is so much love, affection and unity around us. If one person spreads hatred, then there are at least 100 people spreading love. Let’s focus on that,” he says.

PHOTOS: PTI, AFP AND IANS PHOTO: SATISH BATE /HT Resul Pookutty is proud of actors Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Akshay Kumar, among others, who extended help