Vivek Agnihotri’s upcoming directorial venture The Vaccine War has found another backer in Sudha Murty, the Infosys Foundation chairperson who was conferred with the Padma Bhushan earlier this year. Murty recently attended the screening of the film, being dubbed as India’s first bio-science film, in Bengaluru. The philanthropist called the film “heart-touching” and said that it is very hard to balance one’s family and work. She also mentioned that the difficulty to walk the tight rope gets compounded when a woman has children, while adding behind every successful woman is an understanding man.
Vivek Agnihotri shared the three-minute-44-second-long video on X formerly known as Twitter and wrote: “Thank you Sudha Murty ji for your inspiring words at the screening of The Vaccine War”. “I do understand the role of a woman because she is a mother, wife and a career person. It is very hard to balance your family and work. Some people are fortunate. In my case, my parents lived downstairs and I lived upstairs, so I could do better. But, everyone doesn’t have that,” the Padma awardee said.
In her comments after the screening, Murty further talked about the efforts made by women scientists while their children stayed at home. She added that in the future, those children will be proud of their mothers and their achievements. She also said that a common man would not understand what Covaxin is and the nitty-gritties that entail making a vaccine but the movie shows the selfless work done by scientists.
According to her, The Vaccine War will show how vaccines against coronavirus were made in India. “Common man won’t understand what is Covaxin but this movie clearly shows the effort. It is not just work; it is selfless work that all these scientists did. They spent maximum time in this period so that we all can live in a democratic India, happily and healthily. That’s a very important message,” the How I Taught My Grandmother To Read author said.
Murty further talked about how Indians have been enslaved for years and have lost their identity. She also said that due to this, Indians have failed to recognise their potential. “We have tremendous potential, but that is not unleashed because we are always worried that ‘we won’t be able to do it’. But we can do it. That is the message. Not in the medical field only, but in any field, we can do it,” she said.
The author further said that Indians should believe in themselves while adding beauty lies not in clothes or makeup but in the courage and confidence of an individual. She added The Vaccine War has shown that the real wealth of Indians is their confidence.
“We should believe in ourselves. The beauty is not in clothes or makeup. It is in the courage and confidence that we have. You have shown here that the real wealth is our confidence. Please unleash your potential, all Indians. Be ethical, be hardworking and be proud that you are Indian,” she said towards the end.
R Madhavan on The Vaccine War
Sudha Murty’s admiration for the film came weeks after actor-writer R Madhavan backed the Vivek Agnihotri-directorial. After attending a screening of the film, Madhavan praised the sacrifices and achievements of the Indian scientific community in the creation of the indigenous COVID-19 vaccine. He also backed the performances by actors such as Nana Patekar, Anupam Kher, Pallavi Joshi and Raima Sen in an Instagram post.
The Vaccine War story, cast, release date
Directed by Vivek Agnihotri, the film is based on the efforts of Indian scientists to develop an indigenous vaccine against the deadly coronavirus outbreak. The film features Nana Patekar, Pallavi Joshi, Anupam Kher, Raima Sen, Girija Oak, Nivedita Bhattacharya, Kantara actor Sapthami Gowda, and Mohan Kapur in pivotal roles. The film will release in theatres on September 28 this year in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and the Indian Sign Language.
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