What happens when a bunch of friends, mostly IT geeks, who are deeply passionate about their roots come together? A project that showcases an ancient culture but in a format that is appealing to the future generation is born. And that is exactly what this band of boys from Kudla has been up to - documenting the ancient Tulunaadu tradition of Bhootharadhane for the benefit of the future generation. "We are a group of seven boys working in the IT sector in Bengaluru. But the love for our Tulunadu culture is what binds us all and it was during the course of one such nostalgic conversation that the idea to document one of our land's oldest art forms struck us. What actually compelled us was that many of our own people are still in the dark about its origins; you can imagine the situation in the future," observes Sudhir Mudhrady , one of the members of the group that is headed by Nitesh Kuntady . Their pet project is titled Bhootharadhane - a documentary.It's been a year since the group began its long and detailed study of this much-revered practice and a brief trailer of the same has just been released. "Until now, only books and academic records have been compiled on Bhootharadhane. I don't think any detailed visual representation has been worked on so far. So hopefully, we will be able to do justice in portraying its essence," shares Sudhir, who along with his friends has devised a nuanced approach to helming the project.The project kick started with a series interviews with Ph D holders in the subject of Bhootharadhane. "We have also taken inputs from litterateurs and authors as they possess an in-depth and authentic knowledge about the same," says Nitesh. Next on, the team filmed all the prominent traditional Bhoothakolas of the Karavali region. "What we also have to note is that with the change of times, this art form also took on a more ornamental twist as patrons from Mumbai started funding these performances. It started becoming about pomp and showing off rather than retaining the ethnic flavour. So, we steered clear of the more recent troupes and only concentrated on documenting the older Bhootha kolas," he adds.The time-tested ritual will now be showcased in an extremely appealing digital format to appeal even to the future generations. "From the community that practices Bhootharadhane, to the rituals, the process, the places that are popular for kolas, every tiny aspect of this art form will be shown by us. Since an older form of Tulu is used in these performances, we are being doubly careful in conveying the essence in English subtitles. Nonetheless, we are proud of documenting a cultural practice that is so rich and hope we have a hand in preserving its richness for the future generations," sums up Sudhir, who adds that they plan to release their works episode wise for easy understanding of the audience.

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