Madhavan fans and space enthusiasts in the country rejoiced at the announcement of the release date of his directorial debut Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, a couple of days back. The film that is being simultaneously made in Hindi, Tamil, and English, will be released on April 1, 2022.
But what is the film all about and who is it based on? We break it down for you here:
Why is the second part of the title called 'The Nambi Effect'? Who is Nambi?
The film is biographical and tells the story of Nambi Narayanan, an aerospace engineer and a former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) employee. He played a key role in the ISRO developing the Vikas engine that was used for the first PSLV that India launched. However, in 1994, Narayanan was arrested by the Kerala police, falsely, for espionage.
What fuelled his research and how much did he achieve?
The cause of the arrest was Narayanan allegedly leaking national secrets to two alleged Maldivian intelligence officers, Mariam Rasheeda and Fauzia Hassan. Along with another scientist, he was accused of selling data to them for millions. Narayanan spent 50 days in prison and was even tortured in prison. However, the ISRO never supported the scientist.
What happened to Nambi after that?
The case was dismissed in 1996. Following this, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) passed strictures against the government of Kerala for destroying Narayanan's career and for subjecting him to torture. After years of legal battle, the Supreme Court had awarded Rs 50 lakh to him. In addition, the Kerala government had paid him Rs 1.3 Crore in compensation. In 2019, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Indian government.
