Director Bharatbala Ganapathy's Ramnami was recognised as Best Documentary at the 72nd National Film Awards. The film explores the lives of the titular community in the central and northern regions of Chhattisgarh. Bharatbala received the honour from President Droupadi Murmu at the National Award ceremony in Gujarat on Tuesday.
Best known as the director Maryan, starring Dhanush, Bharatbala spent a good part of the last decade making documentaries, exploring less-known stories of India. Through his Virtual Bharat initiative, he has documented his home state Tamil Nadu's heritage with films such as Svaram, Silambam, Kulasekarapattinam, Chasing Gandhi, Manohar Devadoss, V Kalyanam, Chess Grandmaster, Rare Books and Bronze Idol (Thirumeni).
Coming back to Ramnami, the documentary explores an underprivileged community who wears their devotion to Lord Ram proudly on their skin. The story starts in late 19th century, where a man named Parsuram Bharadwaj tattooes the word 'Ram' on his body after he was denied entry into a temple in a village due to his caste. The rest of Parsuram's community members followed in his footsteps in a radical act of religious faith stemming from exclusion.
One of the notable aspects of the film is the song 'Ram hi paar lagavenge' with Kailash Kher's vocals.
Speaking about the recognition for his documentary, Bharatbala Ganapathy said, "Winning the National Award for Ramnami is deeply humbling, but I see this honour not as a recognition of a film, but as a recognition of the people and the living traditions who allowed us to enter their world and tell their story. With Ramnami, we were fortunate to encounter a community whose faith is not merely something they practise; it is something they carry on their bodies, in their lives and in their identity. Their story is one of devotion, resilience and extraordinary human dignity."
The filmmaker added, "For me, documentary filmmaking is ultimately about listening. It is about preserving voices, memories and ways of life that deserve to remain part of our collective consciousness. This National Award belongs first to the Ramnami community, and to the many people of Chhattisgarh who have trusted us with their stories."