Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam: Sound designer Adarsh Joseph Palamattam on winning a State Award

Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam (SOR) has been one of the most talked about movies set against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is currently being lauded for its sound effects, for which it was also honoured with the Best Sync Sound at the 51st Kerala State Film Awards.

The sound designer and field recordist Adarsh Joseph Palamattam is especially being appreciated for the unparalleled skills he portrayed in the movie. In a chat with ‘Bee Cave Movies’, he shared his thoughts on winning the award. He mentioned, “I never expected a state award and when I got one, I felt happy.” He expressed his gratitude for winning the 51st Kerala State Film Awards for the Best Sync Sound and also revealed how his family and friends are filled with joy. He believes that winning this award would boost his career in the film industry. He expressed his best wishes for the team of Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam, including its director, Don Palathara. “They totally understood the importance of sync sound and audio in cinema,” said Palamattam.

Adarsh Joseph Palamattam also shared about his school days where he was introduced to the world of sound designing at a church choir. He later went on to do a course on audio engineering in Chennai, where he specialised in sync sound and its designing there.

Talking about his experience of working in SOR, Palamattam talked about how challenging it was, considering it was a single-shot film where it only revolves around two characters travelling inside a car throughout the story. He revealed how he was recording the conversation of both the actors in the movie, as he was travelling in a follow-up car. “The actors were given a wireless lapel each and a boom mounted to their car,” mentioned the sound designer.

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The director of SOR, Don Palathara also went on to laud the talent of the young sound designer, who felt that the latter was filled with confidence. “I first told him about the concept of a single shot and the restrictions he would have to face as a sound recordist,” said the director when talking to Palamattam. He also talked about working with a small crew where Adarsh had no assistants. He appreciated that the sound designer could pull the work off with ease.

You can catch the latest Rima Kallingal and Jithin Puthenchery starrer on the OTT platforms of Neestream, Cave, Roots, Saina Play, and Mainstream.