She was a volleyball player for the Tamil Nadu team when Bharathiraja decided to cast her in his ambitious En Uyir Thozhan in the early 1990s. And Rama joined the long list of the legendary director’s illustrious ‘R’ heroines.
But, within a year, she disappeared from the scene, settling down to a regular job, marriage and motherhood.
Now, 20-odd years later, Rama is back under the arc lights. Though she played a role in Aval Peyar Thamizharasi some years ago, it was only recently that she wowed critics as Karthi’s feisty, possessive mother in Pa. Ranjith’s Madras . She was also part of A. R. Murugadoss’ Kaththi , where she played Vijay’s mother.
“I am thrilled with the warm welcome the industry has given me. Plus, there’s the happy tag of being a Bharathiraja heroine,” says Rama, who is now a mother of two. Rama says that though offers kept coming in over the years, she kept refusing them, as she wanted to focus on her family. “But Madras was too good an offer to refuse, and so I was back doing what I love best,” she says.
The industry has changed drastically since the 1990s and Rama says it is a great time to be a performer. “There are lovely author-backed roles being written. And now that the pressure of being a heroine and looking good on screen has eased, one needs to just focus on acting,” she says.
Rama, who is now acting with Vijay Sethupathi in S.P. Jananathan’s Purampokku , is all set to sign up for a couple of big films. “I am waiting to do some landmark films to make up for the lost years,” she says. And, on top of her bucket list is a negative role with layers to it.
