Actress Parvathy of 'Poo' fame might have done just a handful of films till date but whatever she's done, she's made sure people have taken notice. The actress' next project is the Dhanush-starrer 'Mariyaan', in which she plays the female lead, Panimalar. Parvathy shares with us the experience of working in the film and what goes on to make her ethnic characters memorable. Excerpts:
Whenever you played an ethnic character, like in Poo or City of God, it's brought out something special in you. Is it because these characters require you to step out of the comfort zone?
Certainly. I choose characters that are challenging to me as an actor. I've often heard from filmmakers that women from villages are raw characters and their stories are more intense. I think even city girls have their own kind of rawness but right now filmmakers want to explore the untold stories of villages.
What can we expect from your role in 'Mariyaan'?
Female characters usually figure in a movie just as a way of furthering a love story. But my character, Panimalar, is different and that's what attracted me to the role. She plays a love interest but also has so many other layers to her. I can't tell you more because I've been asked not to reveal anything about my role in the movie but it's definitely one of the strongest characters I've played so far.
Despite being an ethnic story,' Mariyaan' is arguably the biggest production you've been part of yet.
It's produced by the same production house that has made movies like Anniyan and Dasavathaaram, and you also have Bharat Bala, Dhanush and A R Rahman attached to the film. However, the best thing is that despite being heavyweights, they don't throw their weight around. They are thorough professionals dedicated to making the best movie they can.
Your experience working with Dhanush?
He's a very reserved and no nonsense actor. He comes to the set, does his job and leaves. He's had his fair share of criticism which has made him a better actor. We didn't discuss our scenes for the movie and we would directly go for the take. It made the whole process interesting as it became spontaneous.
Since you usually take a long break between movies, it's obvious that a good degree of preparation goes for each role.
I do only one film at a time because I want to invest myself entirely to the character. Over the past year I've been part of three films — a Kannada movie, Andar Baahar, and the Tamil films Chennaiyil Oru Naal and Mariyaan. Three films a year itself is hectic for me because I want to experience a film, be in that character and then take a break for a month to get away from it all before I take up another project. When I do a role, I want it to be memorable. In Mariyaan, I want people to remember the character, Panimalar, and don't want the image of the actress to dilute it.
The audience has also lapped up your performance in Chennaiyil Oru Naal where you are part of an ensemble cast.
For me, being part of an ensemble cast is tougher because you have just five scenes to make an impact while in a lead role such as Mariyaan, I had 50 scenes to tell my story. Also, in a movie with an ensemble cast and multiple storylines, you have to understand the entire script to know exactly where your character stands and how it works with the other scenes. I had director Shaheed Khader explain to me what will be the scene after and before mine, so I could fit into the scheme of things.
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