Girish Bharadwaj
is credited with building 128 low-cost suspension bridges across rivers and streams, the first of which was a 55-metre bridge across the
Cauvery, connecting the island Nisargadhama, near Kushalnagar with mainland Karnataka. The objective of each of his projects was to connect villagers in such areas with the mainland, which gave him the moniker of Bridgeman of India and earned him a
Padma Shri recognition.
His story is now set to get a cinematic adaptation. Kannada filmmaker
Santhosh Kodenkeri is making a biopic called
The Bridge Man, which will be made in Kannada and released in Hindi as well.
Santhosh, who is yet to finalise the star cast for the film, tells us, “I had discussed the project with Girish two years ago. He was quite happy to share all the information with us. The movie is set in the 90s and will show why he chose to make him hanging bridges, the hardships he faced along the way, including inadequate financial support from the government, and the objections he had from his family while working on a project near a Naxal-infested area in Andhra Pradesh, etc. As a director, making a biopic in an entertaining manner without being preachy will be a challenge for me, as it is a new genre for me. I am looking at kick-starting the film next month in Sullia.”