When they were growing up, Prabakar and Prakash Murugiah would sit next to their grandfather and have him regale them with tales revolving around football.
Football, said their grandfather, was the great unifier and the best way to bridge the gap between all races, especially in a country as diverse as Malaysia.
Fast forward to 2019, the brothers are now on the cusp of releasing their first feature film, a tale on racial unity and togetherness among the people of Malaya during the British occupation.
And yes, it revolves around football.
Set in 1952, Suatu Ketika promises to be a tale of perseverance and unity, featuring a group of young boys aspiring to win a local football match against an elite British team.
Directed and produced by the brothers, the movie will be released in cinemas on Sept 21.
Prakash, 37, who is the director, producer and scriptwriter, said growing up and hearing their grandparents and relatives talking about how football united them inspired the brothers to come up with the theme for the movie.
“Sports, or football, binds people together, regardless of race. We love football. We heard stories by our grandfather and uncles on how united the people were back then.
“There was no separation and it was a nation with stronger unity back then. I love football most. I wanted to see how I could bring them all together in one movie and that was how all this started,” said Prakash.
Suatu Ketika tells the story of a ragtag team of local football players up against a team of highly-privileged football players from a British school.
Prakash said this was taken into consideration since the movie was set in the pre-independence era when Malaya was under British rule.
“Even today, there is a perception that when you see a Mat Salleh, everyone will go ‘wow’, there must be something great about them. I’m not looking down on them, but this story is more about showing that we are all equal and that we can achieve success when we unite.”
He said he was inspired to write the script for the movie in 2011.
“We wanted to get sponsors for the movie, so we did a five-minute featurette to show our potential sponsors.
“We received funding from Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation in 2015 for the development of the featurette (released in 2016 on YouTube).
“With that, we approached the National Film Development Corporation, which gave us a grant that allowed us to start filming.”
Prakash’s entry into the world of filmmaking began in 2006, after reading a book, Shantaram, by Gregory David Robert, given to him by a colleague.
The book was about a man who escaped an Australian prison and escaped to Mumbai, India.
Prakash decided to visit Robert in India in hopes of finding a job in a Hollywood movie, which was supposed to star Hollywood and Bollywood actors such as Johnny Depp and Amitabh Bachan. However, the movie was scrapped when the Writers Guild of America strike happened in 2007.
Determined to realise his dream, he started doing odd jobs for the local movie, Tipu Kanan Tipu Kiri. He also worked with award-winning director Khabir Bakthiar for the feature film Sepi.
Later, his brother, Prabakar, who had just graduated from Universiti Tenaga Nasional as an engineer, decided to join him when he opened his production house, Kash Pictures Sdn Bhd, in 2010.
The brothers later went on to work on a 13-episode series, Crossings, featuring the late Yalal Chin Hansen Lee and Dira Abu Zahar. They won the People’s Choice Award for the 2010 BMW Shorties.
Suatu Ketika is a culmination of the brothers’ dream, as the project is a personal one. As such, the brothers spared no effort with regards to detail.
Prabakar said to ensure that the movie sticks to its 1950s setting, they had many meetings with the late historian Professor Khoo Kay Kim, who helped them put the movie into perspective.
“He was our consultant. He helped us ensure the movie did not stray from the period and stayed within the composition. We had email exchanges and many meetings, with each lasting up to two to three hours.
“He gave us examples on how unity begins in school through sports. His experiences inspired us to show how these kids, who were the underdogs, had a chance to succeed.”
The brothers were fortunate to have roped in a stellar cast, namely actor and director Shahili Abdan, better known as Namron, and Pekin Ibrahim.
Although Namron and Pekin did not have lead roles, their experience proved invaluable in guiding the main actors, who comprised students aged between 8 and 12.
The music’s official soundtrack was written and sung by Datuk Zainal Abidin, with the score composed by iconic musician Michael Veerapen.
What first started as a request to use part of Zainal Abidin’s song, Pantun, eventually led to Zainal writing the song for
them as he was moved by the movie.
Prakash said: “When Zainal watched the movie, he said he could relate to being one of the boys in the movie and told us he wanted to write the song for us.
“It was a surreal experience for us, especially for me. Being a big fan of his and seeing how he wanted to write the original soundtrack for our movie, it took awhile for it to sink in.”
What made the whole experience even more special was that it was the first time Zainal Abdin has written and sung in 11 years.
In tackling the local film industry’s current state, the brothers are determined to change its fate by educating and empowering their cast and crew members to ensure their wellbeing is looked after, even years after the film’s release.
The film will see the cast and crew members partake in a profit-sharing system, as opposed to a big payday. This, said Prakash, was to ensure that crew members, who worked on a contract basis, continue to have a long-term revenue stream.
Prabakar said: “This initiative needs to start from us. If it works, within three to five years, we can recommend this move to other companies.”
The brothers said their only wish was for the audience members to enjoy the movie.
“Hopefully, they will feel good and understand that no matter how bad the situation is, we can achieve our dreams.
“I hope this will serve as a ‘reset button’ for Malaysians, where we can remember that it is our differences that unite us.”
The movie is slated to be released at all Golden Screen Cinemas theatres nationwide on Sept 12.