Rupasree is the new age mother-in-law on Malayalam television. Urmila Desai, Rupasree’s powerful, no-nonsense character in ‘Chandanamazha’, has won the actress such a huge fan following that she is thrilled to bits. And what has become the talk of the town is her glittering style maxim – bright saris, sparkling bindis, and heavy jewellery, more like the moms-in-law in Hindi serials. Rupasree, born and brought up in Chennai, has acted in all the South Indian languages and is currently doing serials on Sun TV (‘Vani Rani’) and Jaya TV (‘Kalabhairava’) as well. The soft-spoken actress talks about finding an audience in Malayalam. Excerpts:
Her career
I started acting in Tamil movies while I was still in school. My first film in the lead role was in Ellaame En Raasathaan opposite Raj Kiran. Kannada and Malayalam film projects followed. My first Malayalam movie was Kallanum Policum with Mukesh, directed by I.V. Sasi. I have acted with Mammootty sir in the Tamil film Pudhayal . Then came Tamil serials. It was after watching my performance in ‘Vani Rani’ on Sun TV that Jayakumar, producer of ‘Chandanamazha’, approached me to play Urmila.
In ‘Chandanamazha’
The serial is based on the Hindi serial ‘Saath Nibhana Sathiya’ on Star Plus. The Tamil remake is on Vijay TV. When the role was offered, I was very nervous, because of the language barrier. But after watching the Tamil version, I got excited about it. Urmila Desai comes across as a negative character in the initial episodes. She gets her son Arjun married to a simple girl, Amrita, against his wishes. But her affectionate nature comes into the picture, when she tries to bring them close. She is strict, but caring as well.
Your style quotient
(Laughs) Everybody is talking about the clothes and jewellery I wear. I am a simple person in real life. I don’t like heavy jewellery at all. I am not very familiar with Malayalam serials, but was told that most of the artistes prefer to keep their looks simple. But when Urmila’s role came to me, I felt that the costumes, make-up and accessories should match her personality. I personally go shopping for everything, either in Chennai or Hyderabad. My crew often asks me how I manage to get all the stuff!
Being Urmila
I am enjoying every bit of it. I have bonded well with the team of ‘Chandanamazha’. Acting alongside senior artistes such as T.R. Omana was interesting. My Malayalam has improved tremendously, though certain words are difficult to understand and pronounce.
In Mollywood
I hold Malayalam movies in high esteem because a lot of importance is given to the story. If I get a good role, I will definitely do it. Otherwise, I am happy working in serials.
(‘Chandanamazha’ airs on Asianet on weekdays at 9.30 p.m.)
