Halitha Shameem pens a note of gratitude on the completion of Minmini

Director Halitha Shameem, who recently completed the shoot of her ambitious film Minmini, has shared a note of gratitude on her social media handle. The film, which was shot across seven years, has a bunch of child artists from Halitha's debut film Poovarasam Peepe. While the first schedule of Minmini was shot in Ooty, in 2015, the final schedule was wrapped up recently in Ladakh. The filmmaker waited for the children to grow up all these years to shoot the remaining portions.

In her latest post, Halitha has written,

"I've never fret so much for a shoot. I wasn't anxious about the actual shooting process but was constantly worried about what if someone falls sick or gets injured. Shooting in a difficult terrain with a very minimal crew had its own unique challenges. Queuing up for supplemental oxygen, constantly checking your oxygen levels, feeling breathless, feeling slowness in whatever you do and yet managing to do the work one step at a time and static electricity shock is the cherry on top of an experience that none of us can easily forget."

Halitha went on to thank her cinematographer Manoj Paramahamsa, the production house backing the film, and other crew members.

"Thanking Manoj Paramahamsa for the trust in the script to wait for almost a decade to finish the film. It wouldn't have been possible without his endorsement of trust! Thanks to Murali Krishnan sir, Anchor bay studios for giving all the support to resume and complete the film with ease. Thank you Jayaseelan sir, our EP for single handedly managing both the Tamil and Ladakhi crew. Raghav Ramesh our live sound recordist whose eyes always let out a sparkle when the take is good and Makthiyar our boom operator, who also worked as a translator at times to communicate with the Hindi speaking actors. Thanks to both of you for your patience! Thanks to the assistants and the entire crew of Manoj sir who were extremely sweet and reliable. I owe so much to Stanzin Lay, our line producer, Ladakh's very own filmmaker for constantly encouraging me and providing me with whatever I needed, treating the film as his own. Thank you Dorjay for being resourceful and for being yourself. Thanking art director Gurmet sir, the greatest sculptor of Ladakh for understanding our needs and helping us with your supreme talent. Thanks to Gyurmet Kasa, direction team for accepting every command, every favour with so much of grace. Thanks to Sonam Tsering, the youngest and wisest of our crew. Thank you my ever supportive AD's Rajiv and Seetho for working so hard in a brain fogging ambience. Ever grateful to both of you! Thank you Raymond Derrick Crasta for keeping us in your thoughts and giving the mental support we needed."

Halithe ended her long note by praising the efforts taken by her lead actors, Esther Anil and Praveen Kishore.

"Esther Anil- What you had to go through is not an easy task at all. You had to combat so many hardships physically and mentally and this character demanded a lot from you. I'm sure you will inspire a whole lot of people to do what you did in the film and I'll always remember what you told me on our return flight, Thank you so much, darl!

Praveen Kishore- words can never explain how proud you make me feel. Watching you perform, I get so choked up with tears of joy that I have to take a long breath, gather strength to call for cut, you heartwrencher! Gaurav Kaalai, This film is for you! 

Thanks to each one of you for the love and support!"

According to reports, Minmini is a coming-of-age film that follows two youngsters who carry survivors’ guilt.