L J Ravi 
Akshi is booster dose for eye donation, says Dr Bhujang Shetty
Narayana Nethralaya, one of the driving forces behind Akshi, the Best Kannada Feature Film at the 67th National Film Awards
Akshi team acknowledges Asia’s leading eyecare hospital for motivation and encouragement received for creating the movie focusing on eye donation
Narayana Nethralaya, Asia’s premier ophthalmological institute, is one of the driving forces behind Akshi (the eyes), the Best Kannada Feature Film at the 67th National Film Awards, with the hospital’s Chairman and Managing Director Dr. K. Bhujang Shetty mentoring and guiding the film. Akshi movie is all about eye donation.
“Akshi is like a booster dose for eye donation and with pride and humbleness, today I share the limelight with this excellent and empathetic film team. The film’s theme is very close to my heart and an important mission of Narayana Nethralaya. I am very happy to be part of this effort to educate the masses on eye donation through the celluloid medium,” said Dr Bhujang Shetty while addressing a joint press meet with the film team on March 30 at the hospital.
Akshi has conceptual connection to the Kannada matinee idol and thespian, late Dr. Rajkumar. So is Narayana Nethralaya’s Dr. Rajkumar Eye Bank, which was inaugurated by the cine icon himself in 1994. In 2006, when the great actor died, his cornea was donated to Narayana Nethralaya. The noble gesture of the legend’s pledge has now come on screen as Akshi. The late Parvathamma Rajkumar also donated her eyes as part of the family’s pledge to ophthalmological care. Over 50% of state’s eye donations are carried through Narayana Nethralaya.
