‘I Wanted To Beat People Up…’

‘Suddenly
the
audience
pool
feels
bigger,
like
everyone
is
watching
everything
now.’

‘It’s
no
longer
limited
in
terms
of
boundaries,
like
a
state
or
a
language.’

‘Whether
it’s
a
series,
a
movie
or
even
a
Korean
film,
the
audience
has
access
to
all
of
it.’

‘Slowly,
the
boundaries
are
blurring,
so
that’s
great
for
actors.’

Children
may
remember
her
as
the
chirpy
storyteller
who
brought
characters
to
life
from
the

Karadi
Tales.

Sukoon
lyricist
and
singer
Swanand
Kirkire
described
her
in
his
endearing
song

Baanwra
Mann
from
the
Malayalam
film

Maayanadhi,
even
calling
her
his
‘favourite
person.’

But
who
is
this
artiste
whose
name
almost
became
an
anthem
of
sorts
after
the
release
of
the

Hridayam,
the
Malayalam
film
that
also
inspired
Karan
Johar?

Darshana
Rajendran,
the
petite
young
actor
from
Thiruvananthapuram,
can
sing,
act,
tell
stories,
entertain
and
even
break
a
leg
if
her
character
demands
so.

The
36
year
old
has
worked
in
over
a
dozen
films
in
Malayalam,
and
recently
collaborated
with
the
award-winning
Sri
Lankan
Director
Prasanna
Vithanage
for
the
film

Paradise,
which
won
an
award
at
the
28th
Busan
International
Film
Festival.

“When
I
started
acting,
I
wouldn’t
have
imagined
that
a
small
actor
from
a
small
part
of
Kerala
would
be
doing
an
international
multi-lingual
film.
Or
that
I
will
be
doing
a
film
in
another
country
working
with
technicians
from
there,”
Darshana
tells

Divya
Nair/Rediff.com.

From
studying
Math
at
Lady
Sri
Ram
College
in
Delhi
and
Economics
at
the
University
of
London
to
acting
and
singing,
how
did
the
shift
happen?

(Laughs)
I
was
born
in
Trivandrum
but
grew
up
in
Saudi
Arabia,
where
I
studied
from
kindergarten
to
eighth
grade.

I
did
my
high
school
in
Cochin.

Then
I
went
to
Delhi
for
my
undergrad
in
Math,
and
then
to
London
for
my
master’s
degree
in
economics.

I
was
working
with
the
Institute
of
Financial
Management
in
Microfinance
in
Chennai,
when
I
started
doing
theatre
on
the
side.

I
got
into
acting
completely
by
chance.

I
started
doing
theatre
sometime
in
2011,
for
four
years.

That’s
also
the
time
when
I
crossed
paths
with

Karadi
and
still
work
in
whatever
capacity
I
can.
At
one
point,
I
used
to
read
their
stories,
take
them
to
schools
and
do
toolkits
for
them.

One
day
I
just
quit
my
job
and
started
acting.

To
keep
it
sustainable,
I
started
exploring
voice
acting,
dubbing
and
storytelling.

How
did
your
parents
respond
when
you
told
them
you
wanted
to
be
an
actor?

I
come
from
a
family
that’s
very
supportive
of
the
Arts.
We
have
grown
up
with
all
kinds
of
music
and
dance.
But
acting
was
my
older
sister’s
forte.

She
teaches
theatre
in
Bangalore.

For
my
mother,
it
was
really
strange
that
I
chose
acting.

I
was
good
with
academics
and
my
mother
was
just
like,
‘Everybody
can
do
Math,
but
everybody
can’t
sing.
Why
don’t
you
study
music?’

But
back
then,
I
thought
I
was
not
going
to
do
that.
I
have
to
study
something
and
find
a
job.
That’s
how
I
decided
to
pursue
the
academic
path.
Then
somewhere
along
the
line,
I
was
like,
okay,
I
guess
I
want
to
do
this
(acting).

My
parents
were
very
supportive.
I
think
that’s
one
of
the
reasons
why
I’m
able
to
hold
through
because
my
support
system
has
backed
me
up
through
the
times
when
it
was
not
easy.

How
did
you
become
a
part
of

Paradise?

I
was
the
last
entrant.
Roshan
(Mathews)
and
Rajeev
(Ravi,
Cinematographer)
were
already
on
board,
and
I’d
heard
about
it
from
them.

I
was
following
the
project
for
a
while,
and
was
excited
about
it
because
it
sounded
like
one
of
those
ideal
settings.

Initially,
the
story
was
about
a
north
Indian
woman
and
a
south
Indian
man.
The
team
was
auditioning
in
Mumbai.

Then
somehow,
they
reconsidered
and
said,
‘Okay,
what
if
it’s
a
Malayali
couple?’

That’s
when
I
came
on
board.

Prasanna
Sir
(Paradise
director)
had
seen
some
of
my
work
before.

I
didn’t
have
to
audition.

He
sent
me
the
script,
and
then
we
had
a
chat
about
the
character
and
all.

I
got
a
call
sometime
in
January
2023
and
we
began
shooting
the
next
month.

When
you
first
heard
the
story
of

Paradise,
what
were
your
thoughts?

Honestly,
I
was
freaking
out!
Because
it
felt
like,
you
know,
this
girl
had
a
lot
to
say
but
she
was
not
saying
it
in
words.

I
mean,
you’re
finding
out
everything
that’s
happening
with
Amritha
in
her
silences,
in
her
interactions
with
the
environment,
with
her
people,
with
the
animals.
It
seemed
very
little
but
a
lot
was
happening.
So
I
thought,
how
do
I
explore
all
of
these
unsaid
things?
How
do
I
react
to
most
of
these
events
without
saying
it
out?

If
you
see
the
film,
whatever
I
did,
you
will
know,
it
was
very
internal.

Amritha
always
has
an
opinion.
Though
she
doesn’t
speak
so
much,
whenever
she
does,
she
is
very
clear
about
it,
and
what
she
stands
for.

The
story
also
explores
the
dynamics
between
her
and
Keshav.
I
was
curious
how
we’re
going
to
figure
working
those
scenes
out.

Director
Prasanna
mentioned
how
he
liked
your
performance
in

Jaya
Jaya
Jaya
Jaya
Hey.
How
is
it
working
with
a
director
who
has
a
certain
expectation
from
you?
Does
it
inspire
your
craft
or
does
it
limit
you?

For
me,
it’s
very
director-driven.

With
Prasanna,
sir,
it
was
a
very
quiet
support.
I
felt
like
he
held
me,
even
if
he
said
very
little.

For
example,
he
gave
me
the
freedom
that
‘You’re
a
woman.
You
will
know
her
(the
character)
better
than
I
do.’

He
was
ready
to
travel
with
me,
where
I
was
taking
Amritha
in
the
story.

There
is
this
trust
that
Prasanna
sir
has
in
his
actors.
It’s
a
very
empowering
feeling;
it’s
like
you
are
responsible
for
that
and
you
feel
like
you
should
work
everything
through.

That
helped
me
a
lot.

Every
time
I
made
a
mistake
in
terms
of
something
like
an
order
of
events,
he’d
call
a
cut.
Then
he’d
think
about
it
and
say,
‘No,
that’s
right.
That’s
exactly
what
you
should
be
doing.
That’s
the
right
thing.’

He
was
very
supportive
of
the
choices
I
made.

That
helped
me
trust
my
instincts.

Your
career
graph
has
some
very
interesting
films.
In
most
of
your
films,
the
character
begins
like
this
cute,
submissive
or
vulnerable
female
who
displays
a
certain
strength
of
character
(CU
Soon,
Irul,
Purusha
Pretham,
Jaya
Jaya
Jaya
Jaya
Hey
and
now

Paradise).
Is
this
deliberate?
How
do
you
usually
pick
the
script
or
the
characters?

I
don’t
think
like
that
at
all.
I
only
think
of
it
as
playing
a
human
being.

There’s
going
to
be
strength,
there’s
going
to
be
weakness.

Even
if
you
take
Jaya
(from
Jaya
Jaya
Jaya
Jaya
Hey),
you’ve
seen
her
in
her
weakness,
you
have
seen
her
as
the
rebel.
That’s
sort
of
the
human
experience,
right?

You
can’t
say
this
person
is
a
strong
or
weak
person
because
as
human
beings,
you
go
through
it
all.

It’s
not
like
I
have
chosen
to
do
one
type
of
character.
When
I
see
the
script
or
narration,
it’s
like,
Does
this
person
who
they’re
trying
to
show,
pitch
to
me?

Does
it
sound
like
a
human
being
who
has
all
of
this?

Will
I
have
fun
doing
it?

Will
I
be
able
to
find
the
layers?

Like
in,

Purusha
Pretham,
you’re
not
seeing
a
lot
of
this
person

(in
real
life)
but
I
felt
like
she
has
a
story
to
tell.
There’s
a
lot
she
could
have
gone
through
that
I
can
explore.

The
exciting
part
is
in
showing
all
of
that
without
really
showing
it.

As
someone
who
has
done
theatre,
do
you
have
a
certain
process
of
approaching
a
character?

For
me,
I
work
better
with
the
doing
than
planning
or
thinking.

I
familiarise
myself
with
the
script
in
a
way
that
you
can
ask
me
what
scene
comes
where,
and
I
know
all
of
it.

Beyond
that,
I
feel
like
I
work
a
lot
based
on
what’s
happening
on
the
sets
—
my
instincts,
plus
what
I
am
getting
from
a
co-actor.

I
depend
a
lot
on
what
I’m
getting
from
a
co-actor,
my
environment
or
what
that
scene
is
set
up
like,
or
from
my
director.

I
ensure
that
I
work
a
lot
on
anything
that
I
need
to,
for
the
character
to
be
present
in
that
space.

(For
example)
If
it’s
a
language
I’m
not
comfortable
with,
I’ll
make
sure
that
I
work
towards
being
as
comfortable
as
I
can
be
with
the
language.

If
it’s
a
skill
that
I
need,
say,
like,
in

JJJH,
if
I
have
to
emote
without
freaking
out
when
I’m
doing
the
taekwondo
scene,
I
would
prepare
for
it
accordingly.

You
have
worked
with
Roshan
Mathews
before.
How
was
your
experience
working
with
the
cast
and
crew
in

Paradise,
especially
the
Sri
Lankan
actors?

Roshan
and
I
have
known
each
other
since
the
beginning
of
my
career.

With
him,
it’s
a
very
different
approach,
especially
how
he
goes
about
a
character
or
scene.

He
is
very
meticulous.

There’s
a
process
that
he
goes
by
and
it’s
incredible
to
see
him
keep
it
and
then
take
it
all
and
put
it
away
and
go
for
a
shoot.

I
love
how
Mahendra
(Perera,
Sri
Lankan
actor)
sir
—
who
plays
Sergeant
Bandara
in

Paradise
—
comes
with
so
much
energy.
He
comes
to
the
set
every
day
to
have
a
party.
I
love
how
much
he
enjoys
his
work.

He’s
been
working
for
so
many
years,
he
has
done
so
many
films,
but
he
comes
with
that
sort
of
energy.
It’s
almost
like
the
whole
set
switches
on
the
minute
he
steps
in.

Shyam
(Fernando)
sir,
who
played
Mr
Andrew
is
so
calm,
just
like
in
the
film.
That’s
a
different
energy
too.
When
you’re
doing
a
scene
with
him,
you’re
able
to
breathe.

It’s
good
to
see
international
directors
collaborating
with
Malayalam
actors
and
wanting
to
make
these
incredible
films
to
showcase
to
the
global
audience.
What
do
you
think
has
changed
for
Malayalam
actors
that
suddenly
brought
them
to
the
limelight?

I
think
for
one,
Malayalam
actors
are
being
watched
a
lot
more.

After
the
lockdown,
I
feel
like
every
small
film
that
I’m
doing
is
suddenly
not
a
small
film
any
more.

It’s
travelling
everywhere.

Suddenly
the
audience
pool
feels
bigger,
like
everyone
is
watching
everything
now.

It’s
no
longer
limited
in
terms
of
boundaries,
like
a
state
or
a
language.

Whether
it’s
a
series,
a
movie
or
even
a
Korean
film,
the
audience
has
access
to
all
of
it.
Slowly,
the
boundaries
are
blurring,
so
that’s
great
for
actors.

Paradise
is
an
international
film
released
in
five
languages.
The
fact
that
I
got
to
be
a
part
of
that
is
a
big
thing.

When
I
started
acting,
I
wouldn’t
have
imagined
that
a
small
actor
from
a
small
part
of
Kerala
would
be
doing
an
international
multi-lingual
film.

Or
that
I
will
be
doing
a
film
in
another
country
working
with
technicians
from
there.

Do
you
think
films
like

CU
Soon
that
released
during
the
lockdown
gave
new
life
to
Malayalam
cinema?

I’m
sure
it’s
one
of
the
films.
But
there
were
a
bunch
of
them
like
say,

Kumbalangi
Nights.

If
you
go
to
any
place
outside
of
Kerala,
they’re
always
talking
about
it.

I
think
for
me,
the
perception
of
how
people
saw
me
as
an
actor
changed
around
the
time

C
U
Soon
happened.

So
I
would
definitely
think
of
that
as
a
landmark.

What
are
the
projects
you
are
working
on?

In
Malayalam,
I
have
worked
on
Ashiq
Abu’s

Rifle
Club
and
Director
Krishand’s
(Purusha
Pretham)

Sambhava
Vivaranam
Naalara
Sangham.

I’m
working
on
a
Telugu
film
called

Parada.

You
have
lived
and
grown
up
in
so
many
cities.
How
many
languages
can
you
speak?

I
speak
in
Malayalam.

I
learned
Telugu
for
the
film
I
was
working
on
(Parada).

I
can
speak
Hindi.

I
don’t
think
you
can
count
it
but
I
learned
Arabic
as
a
child
because
I
was
in
Saudi
until
the
eighth
grade.

I
also
learnt
French
in
school.

Is
there
a
dream
role
you
would
like
to
work
on?

I
want
to
do
it
all.

Every
time
I
see
a
great
film,
I’m
like,
oh,
my
God,
I
want
to
work
with
someone
like
that.

Also,
I
think
for
a
long
time,
I
wanted
to
beat
people
up,
which
I
got
to
do
in

JJJH
(laughs).

A
few
tips
that
you
would
like
to
share
with
youngsters
who
want
to
make
a
career
in
films
or
the
entertainment
industry?

Look
out
for
opportunities.

Do
auditions,
make
sure
you
are
active
in
that
space.

Keep
working
on
your
craft.

There
are
plenty
of
workshops,
so
make
sure
you’re
honing
your
skills
in
some
way
or
the
other.

When
you’re
waiting
for
things
for
a
long
time,
things
tend
to
get
low.
Remember
to
find
ways
to
stay
afloat.

Finally,
when
the
opportunities
come
through,
find
your
routine
that’s
useful
for
you,
like
taking
care
of
your
mental
and
physical
health.

Make
sure
you’re
working
on
your
body,
mind
and
voice.