“I FEEL BLESSED THAT I PLAY THE HERO IN FILMS THOUGH I AM 41 TODAY”

JYOTHIKA

By Jyothi Venkatesh

Tell us something about your next Tamil film Ponmagal Vandhal, which is being dropped tomorrow on Amazon Prime Video!

My next film Ponmagal Vandhal is a thriller with a difference. You can also call it a contemporary court room drama. My heart is very close to the subject which has been tackled in the film by the director J.J. Frederick who has also written it, besides making his debut as a director. The film has a very pertinent social message with which each and every person who watches it will be able to identify with it instantly and also connect to it. It is a film which will make every woman proud.

You have shared the screen with five different actors who are also directors on their own right. How was it?
Yes. I have been lucky that in the film, I got an opportunity to work with five actors who are also goods directors, including K. Parthiepan, Thiagarajan, Pandiarajan, Pratap Pothan and K.Bhagyaraj. Earlier, in Jackpot, I could get the opportunity to work with Revathy. It was Frederick’s vision and idea to cast five different actors who are also directors in the film. I should confess that it was a learning experience for me. I learnt how they prepared their dialogues and delivered them clearly with precision and clarity.

You play a lawyer in the film. At home, are you a lawyer or a judge?

At home, I am never a lawyer because I am always a judge. If you compare me with my earlier film as an actress, you will realize that I have really come out of my shell. I am now under the blue sky. Today, if you ask me I can do any kind of role. I feel I am blessed that though I am not asking any director to give me a good role, I am being approached by many directors with subjects which are daringly different from the kind of subjects, which are being made these days.

How difficult was it to act with directors like Parthiepan and K Bhagyaraj?

It was a big challenge to deliver my dialogues in front of Parthieban because they were lengthy and it is basically a courtroom drama but thankfully I was prepared as I was given the script three months ago by the writer director. It is to the credit of director Frederick that he has shot four single shots each of five minutes, You would not believe that Frederick who is in his 20’s has not only written the subject well but also made his debut with this film so much so that in the first narration itself I was hooked on to the subject and said eyes to be a part of it. He film has a lot of layers, thrills’, twists and turns and amazing interval point and also a smashing climax. I was sure that he was going to give his best shot to the film when he narrated me the subject.

Why are you very choosy and do not accept all offers dangled in front of you?

I cannot accept any and every role. I have a son as well as a daughter, I feel blessed that  I am called upon to play the hero in films though I am 41 today. I want to characters that are not only intelligent but also dignified to the core. In Ponmagal Vandhaal I play a lawyer in the session court in Ooty. I want to play real life characters, with which the audiences can easily identify themselves with. I will agree to do a film only if I am sure that people will talk about my role and the film even 20 years after your film is released. If you play a cop’s role, you can easily pad your scene with action but when you set out to play a lawyer, you cannot resort to action and have to deliver your lines with perfection. Considering the fact that I have never ever gone to a court till date, I should thank the director for having done all his home work with perfection.

Your film is being dropped in an OTT platform like Amazon Prime Video. What do you think about the pros and cons of this move?

I’d say it is only pros and no cons. Today everyone is watching OTT platforms which have come to the rescue of women centric as well as small films which have rich and out of the box content at their disposal because generally people go out to see only mass oriented films where the heroes play a larger than life roles. Especially in the last months after the Corona virus scare the number of people who are watching the OTT platform has shot up considerably, though all said and done, I will not deny that had the situation been different, it would have been a joy as an actor to see the reaction of the audiences when your film is released in theatres.

Go on!

OTT release is a big celebration for actors and directors because it is a very beautiful platform as a film maker will be able to reach many more as there are eye balls in as many as 200 countries all over the world. I would say that it is definitely a very fair platform. I would say that OTT is actually an extension of films, but it also not a permanent solution. It is the only solution for the time being when theatres are not open. If we wait to release Ponmagal Vandhal, there is a long queue. It will take at least a year for the hero oriented films to release and the heroine oriented films will get their chance only after two years.

Why do you prefer to work in only your own home productions?

After 36 Vayathinile, I have mostly acted in only my own home productions, because I will be in my own comfort zone when I am acting in my own films, especially since I have to strike a balance between my career and also my home and kids. Also when you do not know how the audience is going to respond to your film, it is better to invest in your film on your own. I am extremely happy with the role I have been offered in Ponmagal Vandhal as there are several layers to my role as a lawyer but I would not like to divulge more details about my role in the film.  However I can say for fact that the message that is underlined in the film will touch every one’s heart.

You seem to opt to act under new directors in your films of late. J.J. Fredrick is also a new director, who is all set to make his debut with Ponmagal Vandhal

I feel that working with new comers as directors is very good because they do not follow the typical pattern. They belong to a new genre and their working process is very different from that of mine. If I work only with the same directors, I may end up becoming stagnant as an actress. If you ask me what the criterion by which I select my films is, I’d say that I always see what the screenplay of a film offers.

I feel that there should be a play in the screenplay so that the audience does not get bored and the plot is also layered. The character of Venpa that I play in Ponmagal Vandhal is the most challenging that I have ever played in my career. It is my 49^th film. Suriya loved the film when he saw it because it has such a fresh premise not yet seen earlier in any Tamil film before. I am 100 per cent sure that everyone will connect to the film in large numbers.

Why did you decide to launch your own production banner?

2D Entertainment is the banner under which Suriya and I produce films. We set out to make films because we feel that Cinema is a very strong medium and a gift to us actors as well as producers to influence feel good minds. It is nice to feel socially responsible as actors. Suriya is not only a great husband but as a producer he does not interfere at all. He came only once when we were shooting in Ooty because it was raining heavily and he just wanted to make sure that the shooting did not suffer on account of the rains.

Are you also open to act in web series in the near future?

Though my film as a producer and actor is going to be dropped on OTT platform, if you ask me whether I’d like to work in web series, I’d say that I am not sure. Nothing in my life including acting in films had been planned till today. I feel good cinema should live. See if I do not get good offers to act in films, who knows, I may take up acting in web series too.

Like you said you balance your work as an actress as well as home. Which has been your best role till today?

My brain functions the best from 7 am to 12 noon every day. I feel that when my husband has constructed such a big and nice bungalow, why I should continue working. If you ask me which the toughest role to play is, I’d say that the role of the housewife is the toughest. It is tougher than being a part of a biopic.

How keen are you in taking up politics?

Like my sister Nagma, I do not want to take up politics because I am of the opinion that you can do far greater work for the masses even though you are not in politics because I think every actor ahs a social responsibility and should not just depend on the government. Before setting out to clean your city, you should see to it that your house is clean. Isn’t it?