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GULF MADHYAMAM l No1 IN THE GULF

2012 MAY 9 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 47

FIRST TAKE>Jyothi Varma

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here are stars that dazzle fora while and then fade away;there are others that appearto us as a blip of light initiallybefore growing and growing in

their lustre. The career of endearing ac-tor Samvritha Sunil has taken the lattercourse; she debuted in Rasikan (2004)opposite Dileep as another Lal Jose findand did a few unremarkable roles beforeshining brighter and brighter.

Warm, straightforward, unambigu-ousthat is Samvritha Sunil for you.She was shooting for Diamond Neck-lace when she spoke to First Take.When I asked her how she got intofilms, she said that the readers wouldbe bored of reading her entry into filmsas she had narrated the story umpteentimes. But when I insisted that we all

would love to hear it from the horsesmouth, Samvritha budged. I was doingmy first year degree in St Teresas whenRenjith Uncle (director Renjith) whois a good friend of my father referredmy name to Laluettan (Lal Jose) whowas looking out for a female lead in hisupcoming film with Dileep. Laluettanand his associates came to the hostel tosee me. The photo shoots, auditions...everything happened in a blur and inthe blink of an eyelid I was on the setsof Rasikan, said Samvritha.

Rasikan did not do well at the BOwhich is not a good a good start as faras a beginner is concerned. A few smallroles in films like Chandrolsavam andNerariyan CBI followed. It is difficultfor a beginner to pick and choose, shesaid. On how she commits to a pro-ject, Samvritha says thatshe generally makes sureabout her role in the filmand is also keen on know-ing the storyline. (She saysthe most difficult thing isto say No to the filmmakerwhen she is not happy abouta story). In Mollywood, thescript is generally not passedon to the artists though the

practice is slowly changing.For instance, I had a chanceto read Neelathamaras scriptbefore working in the film,says the actor.

Samvritha is perhaps one of the fewfemale artists in the contemporary cir-cuit who dub in their own voice. She isalso one of the few Mollywood heroineswho have not migrated to other pastureseven though she has appeared in oneTamil movie (Uyir), a Hindi film, (TheWhiteElephant) and a Telugu film.

Naturally, I was curious to know whyshe didnt act in more films in Tamil

charms

She

with her verveand Hindi. The response was matter-of-fact. Samvri-tha says no films excited her. Besides, she was get-ting good offers from Malayalam. So the choice waseasyto stick on in Malayalam.I was very raw to themedium of cinema when I acted in Rasikan. Since Iwas ignorant, nothing scared me then. One can say thatI did not even realise the significance of my profes-sion, says Samvritha. The heroine in mass entertainersgot her first taste of disturbing cinema in Achanu-rangaathaVeedu that dealt with the trauma of a sexualabuse victim.

If I became kind of serious in my approach afterAchanurangaathaVeedu, by the time Arabikkadhahappened I believe I had evolved much more as an ac-tor, she says. The actor feels that the role in Neelatha-mara, Lal Joses re-telling of the 1979 classic by M

T Vasudevan Nair, also proved to be a greatlearning curve.Shivers still overcome me whenI shoot for Laluettans films even though I haveknown him for the past eight years. It is as if allmy experience in cinema disappears when I amon the sets of his film, says Samvritha.

Samvritha who is a part of both commercialand parallel movies feels that they have differ-ent paces. In commercial movies everythingis fast. The reactions are quicker and sharperwhereas the pace is more relaxed and theemoting much more subtle in parallel cinema,says Samvritha.

The actor says she interacts with her fans onnetworking sites. Initially, she used to get fan

mail that she found quite thrilling. Samvritha now hasa fan page where she updates all her professional de-velopments. A classical dancer, Samvritha is busy withdance shows while not on shooting locations.

To her family, she is plain Ammu.This industry de-mands a lot of patience. The Samvritha you are speak-ing to now is a version of me that was shaped overeight years of hard work. Shortcuts will not take youanywhere. There is no substitute for hard work, saysthis charming actor.

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dEsIGnEd/dilna

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