Director S. Haricharan is in China to film the life of Bodhidharma, said to be a Tamil prince

“Is the blue-eyed barbarian, as he is referred to in Chinese texts, a myth or real?” asks film director S. Haricharan (Thoovaanam), who is in China on invitation to shoot a film on the life of Bodhidharma, the 28th Patriarch of Buddhism. “I consider this a rare privilege and an even greater honour that I have been given access to shoot inside the Shaolin temple at Mount Song in the Henan Province of China. It is probably the first time that a film director from Tamil Nadu will have access to shoot inside the Shaolin temple. It is even more gratifying that I will be shooting a film on the life of the great Bodhidharma who, according to many available records, was a Pallava prince born in Kanchipuram!” says Haricharan.

Prior to his visit to China, Haricharan went on a recce to Vaiyalur (Kanchipuram) to check out a culvert inscription available with A.S.I Chennai (provided by Dr. Maheshwari) that one Bodhivarman (a Pallava prince) did exist around the same period that Bodhidharma surfaced in China. “Did Bodhivarman, on embracing Buddhism and fearing persecution, flee from Kanchi via the Palar river to Mammalapuram and then board a ship to China? Did his father, the king, aid him in his efforts to leave Kanchi in search of a forefather who was already in China spreading Buddhism? There are many such unanswered questions. With hope in my heart and filled with pride and enthusiasm, I am on the way to China in an effort to try and unravel the mystery surrounding Bodhidharma,” says an excited Haricharan.

The director is accompanied by cinematographer Sharon and will be assisted by a Chinese crew while shooting at the Shaolin temple.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Cinema Plus / by Nikhil Raghavan / Chennai – May 31st, 2014