Janani Krishnaswamy / Sify
Chennai, Dec 1: Infected with HIV? Don’t worry. All you need to do is stay positive, This is the message conveyed by the Tamil telefilm Adutha Kattam (Next Stage) that seeks to improve HIV/AIDS awareness.
Produced by Scope International, a subsidiary of the Standard Chartered Bank, the film has well-known Tamil actress Rohini and Prem Sai in the lead role. It has been directed by Lakshmi and Saraswati, who happen to be sisters.
Rohini is well known for using her popularity to raise awareness about burning issues like AIDS, health care for the mentally ill and child care.
The film not only gives a message of hope to the HIV-positive patients but also provides the actress with a platform to raise awareness about an issue close to her heart.
Shashi Ravichandran, head of corporate affairs of Scope International, said the film is in keeping with the Standard Chartered Bank’s ‘Living with HIV’ programme, a relentless campaign that the company has been involved in for over five years.
The short film will portray how an HIV-affected person can take care of himself/herself. It also attempts to educate the public about the treatment and support systems available.
The duration of the film is about 30 minutes, and on release it may be translated into other languages. Adutha Kattam will be screened on December 1, World AIDS Day, on the Tamil television channel Star Vijay at 6:30 pm.
With a commitment to educate one million people on HIV/AIDS by 2010, Scope has also organised a number of activities to mark the day. These include donation camps, awareness kiosks at key locations, messages on 100 MTC buses, carnival for HIV/AIDS infected children and pledges by employees to support the education of such children through voluntary contributions.
Standard Chartered, one of the largest international banks, has received worldwide recognition for its employee education programme on HIV/ AIDS. The bank received the Edelman Health AIDS and Employment Award from the European Union in 2000 and a Commonwealth Award in 2001 for “outstanding work on advocacy and education” regarding HIV and AIDS.