Based on the life of Nambi Narayanan, starring R. Madhavan, Rocketry: The Nambi Effect follows the life of a much-lauded scientist from the Indian Space Research Organisation who was falsely accused of espionage for selling rocket technology to Pakistan; he was later exonerated.
The biopic chronicles his life as a graduate student at Princeton University before embarking on a career as a scientist. Due to Narayanan’s patriotic leanings and desire to further India’s space research program, he turned down a lucrative and prestigious job offer at NASA.
A labor of love, R. Madhavan not only starred in the film but took on directing, writing, and producing duties. Madhaven made it a point to illustrate Narayanan in his personal life, which revealed him to be a devoted husband and father of three children.
In an interview with filmbeat.com, Madhaven talked about how Narayanan found himself accused of espionage. “He was such a great scientist of ISRO. He was so perfect that people could not believe it. People thought: how can someone be so patriotic, so expert in their work? They thought something must be wrong with this person. And, as people got a chance, they showed no mercy to him. Not even listening to him. Truly speaking, after meeting Nambi Narayanan, I became a different person,” he explains. “There was a splendor on his face along with pain in his eyes. I understood that this person cannot be known because of just one controversial case. There is something very special in him. When I heard his full story, I felt that ignoring his achievements would be a betrayal to the country. And that’s why I made this film.”
It’s a particularly relevant story given today’s cancel culture. The film acts as a cautionary tale of what can happen when fake news supersedes common sense.