‘I would often mimic Carl Sagan...’: National Film Award winner Harikrishnan S

Written by Aparna Nair for The New Indian Express

Sound has long been the spice of cinema. Without it, the frames demand an evolved, almost intuitive, audience to grasp what is being conveyed. Sound, in all its evolutionary sense, can be king.

Forget cinema, take cricket since it’s trending now. Remember how the likes of Geoffrey Boycott, Tony Greg, Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri elevated the thrill of matches through their commentaries? One needn’t even watch the games to get a sense of the excitement.

Harikrishnan S, however, did not realise this quiet power his baritone carried. Its subtle dignity — shaped by his academic grounding and his keen interest in world affairs — drew many in the infotainment space to him, though he himself was unaware of its full potential.

A postgraduate in English literature, this Thiruvananthapuram resident’s voice journey began with a stint in the Gulf and later to a career in medical transcription. Unknowingly, these experiences honed the gift he possessed: a voice that could carry brands through ads, and now, documentaries.

Winning the National Award for Best Voiceover came as a surprise, says Harikrishnan, who now joins an elite league of past winners from Kerala such as Nedumudi Venu, Prof. Aliyar, Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan and Balachandran Chullikkadu.

Excerpts from an interaction:
 
Did you expect such a recognition for ‘The Sacred Jack’?

Never, not at this scale. It was extremely surprising. Voiceovers had become quite routine for me, often done for friends’ advertisement projects. The ‘Sacred Jack’, too, happened that way. I was stunned when a friend in Delhi called to inform me about the award. It took a while to sink in before I passed on the news to the director, R S Pradeep, who was then undergoing cancer treatment and is no longer with us.

Were you always interested in voice art?

Not at all. I never imagined my voice would even be noticed. I loved reading and the English language. A PG in literature deepened that. Later, work took me to the Gulf. It was on returning during the Covid period that I began to sense my voice’s possibilities. I had started a medical/legal transcription company.

 That gave me exposure to different kinds of voice and diction. The real focus, however, came when I began reciting poems online during the pandemic.

 Soon, some entrepreneur friends started asking me to do voiceovers for their ads. That eventually led to the collaboration with R S Pradeep. I worked with him first on the English version of his ‘Munnam Valavu’, which also had won a National Award (Best Environment Film). I helped him with the translation as well. Then, he called me again for ‘The Sacred Jack’.

How did you prepare yourself?

To be honest, I did nothing specific. I believe command over speech and pronunciation come naturally through reading and academic work. I have always been a documentary enthusiast — be it the Films Division shorts on Doordarshan, BBC programmes, or Carl Sagan’s legendary ‘Cosmos’, which I adored for its gripping narration. I would often mimic him, experimenting with delivery. Desmond Morris’s ‘The Human Sexes’ was another favourite.

 Later, the internet gave me access to even more well-narrated documentaries. I admire Richard Dawkins too. Alongside, I freelanced for some media outlets. That also probably sharpened my diction and delivery subconsciously.

So you are largely self-taught...

 Learning has always been part of me. I regularly follow socio-political discussions, watch interviews, and remain an avid reader. I also launched ‘Insight Hunt’, a YouTube channel for infotainment narratives. The foray into films, however, was almost accidental — more consequence than intention. And perhaps that’s how it should be: evolve naturally.

How was it working on ‘The Sacred Jack’?

The script was in Malayalam, so I had to translate it entirely into English. Narration then came easily, as I already knew the flow of the story. I am glad that narration was made central to the documentary. It was a rewarding experience.

What are your upcoming projects?

A few people approached me with projects after the award was announced. This includes my daughter, who works in advertising (laughs)! There are some film projects too. I regularly attend IDSFFK, where documentaries are thriving. On the personal front, I am now working on an audio project with my college teacher and poet Vijay Nair.

How do you view the trend of podcasts and audiobooks gaining popularity?

Podcasts are very much in vogue. Many people today prefer listening over reading. I too want to develop something in that space, perhaps expanding Insight Hunt to include interviews.  In Kerala, podcasts often lack professionalism… hosts often interrupt or impose opinions.

Interviewers like Vir Sanghvi and Rajeev Mehrotra have shown how it should be done, giving respect and space to their guests. That’s the standard I aspire to.

So you think good times lie ahead for sound-based media, including radio…

Absolutely. All India Radio may be streamlining, but with timely innovation, it can regain vibrance. The charm of human voice  is irreplaceable.

But, of late, technology has been threatening to replace human tasks…

Well, AI tools may deliver precision in structure and grammar, but humans bring emotion. The power of a pause, the excitement of discovery, the calm of reflection — these make a voiceover compelling. Can AI truly replicate that? Technology can, at best, complement talent, but it cannot replace the emotional essence of human sound.

‘The Sacred Jack: Exploring the Tree of Wishes’

 The documentary centres on a fruit that is arguably Kerala’s own. Ancient records indicate its cultivation in south India as early as 3,000 years ago. The Malayalam word for the fruit, chakka, gave rise to the Portuguese jaca, which in turn influenced the English word jackfruit.

 ‘The Sacred Jack’ explores the fruit tree in all its social and emotional relevance to the region, as well as its ecological importance. It opens with Prof. Madhusoodanan Nair’s poem on the jackfruit and then shines a light on its significance in Kerala’s culinary culture.

The documentary also highlights recent movements to promote the fruit and its derivatives, while underlining its potential as an ally in combating climate change. The National Award comes as a solace to the team behind the project, which faced a loss on August 15 when its director, the award-winning documentary filmmaker R S Pradeep, passed away after battling cancer. The team now hopes to release the documentary on OTT soon.

Winners of National Award for Best Narration/Voicever
2003 (starting year) – Balachandran Chullikkadu (The 18 Elephants – 3 Monologues)
2004 – Yang Yen Thaw (The Legend of Fat Mama)
2005 – Ajay Raina (Wapsi)
2006 – Nedumudi Venu (Minukku)
2007 – Vani Subramanian (Ayodhya Gatha)
2008 – Elangbam Natasha (Sana Keithel)
2009 – Ranjan Palit (In Camera)
2010 – Nilanjan Bhattacharya (Johar: Welcome to Our World)
2011 – Ann Abraham (Just that Sort of a Day)
2012 – Moni Bordoloi (Suranjana Deepali)
2013 – Lipika Singh Darai (Kankee O Saapo)
2014 – Ambooty (Anil Kumar) & Devi S (Nitya Kalyani – Oru Mohiniyattam Patham)
2015 – Harish Bhimani / Prof. Aliyar (Mala Laj Watat Nahai / Arangile Nithya Vismayam…)
2016 – Setsu Makino Togawa (Makino: An Indian Haiku)
2017 – Francois Castellino (The Lion of Ladakh)
2018 – Deepak Agnihotri & Urvija Upadhayay (Madhubani – The Station of Colours)
2019 – David Attenborough (Wild Karnataka)
2020 – Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan (Rhapsody of Rains – Monsoons of Kerala)
2021 – Kulada Kumar Bhattacharjee (Hati Bondhu)
2022 – Sumant Shinde (Murmurs of the Jungle)
2023 – Harikrishnan S (The Sacred – Jack Exploring the Tree of Wishes)