“I am surprised,” that’s her first reaction when we ask Kavya Madhavan about completing 25 years in Malayalam film industry. You can’t miss out on the beatific expression on her face as she blows candles and cuts cake to celebrate the milestone in a video shared on her Facebook page. “I really can’t believe that so many years have flown by,” she says.
Akashvani, releasing tomorrow, is her first film of 2016. “It has been a journey of surprises and significant turning points, right from the time my father sent my photo on seeing a newspaper ad calling for child artistes for Kamal’s film, Pookkalam Varavayi, when I was all of five. The people who worked in Pookkalam Varavayi later played a crucial role in my career. Roy P. Thomas, the art director, gave me my second movie, Pavam IA Ivachan , which was his directorial debut, and Lalu uncle [Lal Jose], an assistant director then, made me a heroine with his Chandranudikkunna Dikkil . I was 14 then. Till then, my family, especially my mother, used to tell everyone there was no question of my becoming a leading lady. She wanted me to do my graduation, get married…But that wasn’t meant to be…,” she says with a laugh.
The conversation then veers to Akashvani . “Akash (Vijay Babu) and Vani (Kavya) are a well-educated couple, highly placed in society. Akash is in the construction industry, Vani is the head of a television channel; they have a son. They move apart gradually, with small fights and arguments leading to bigger problems as their ego comes in between. There is no novelty in the theme as all this happens in many households. However, the role was a new experience for me as an actress. I had to bring in a different body language, had to walk and talk with attitude… there had to be a touch of arrogance about her, which I could bring in with much difficulty (laughs). It was easy for Vijay chettan to slip into the role because he is used to that kind of a lifestyle. We have been good friends for a long time and the camaraderie helped. He was not the hero when the story was narrated to me, but he was so clear about how Akash should be that I asked him why he could not do it,” she says.
Directed by Khais Millen, who made the much-appreciated short film, Lipstick , and written by script-writer duo of Vinod Vijayakumar and Vinod Jayakumar, the film features many new faces behind the camera. Kavya admits that she had her apprehensions about working with a new director, but that changed soon after she met him. “He had answers for all my doubts and that’s how I went ahead with the project,” she says.
So, a lot of thought goes into before she says yes to a role? “Of course. I have become selective. I am appalled by some of the stories that come to me. Though they are heroine-oriented subjects, they are very similar to the roles I have done. Also, there is so much of pain and suffering in all of them, such as harassment, exploitation of woman, abuse, domestic violence… I often wonder why they want to torture me and the audience with the same old themes (laughs). Don’t we have enough of that happening all around? I believe that a film should entertain. A film can be realistic, but wouldn’t the audience prefer to relax in the few hours they spent in the theatre?” she thinks aloud.
The search is always for a role that grips her and she has found one such script with Jeethu Joseph. Kavya has signed another project before moving on to Jeethu’s film. “It will be a heroine-oriented thriller and I am really excited about working with him,” she says.
Meanwhile except for one song she has written for Akashvani , writing has taken a backseat for Kavya, who has written lyrics for an album and for a film. Now that she is just “a few papers away from getting a degree”, any wishes to be fulfilled? “I hoped to do more films in other languages, but that never happened. Another wish is to do a full-fledged comedy. In fact, according to those who know me really well, I can be what I am in real life to play such a role…,” says Kavya bursting into laughter.
Business matters
The two-time state-award winning actress is enjoying her stint as a business woman. Laksyah, her online textile store, was launched in June last year. “I had always wanted to take up something else while doing films. A lot of options were there before me, such as dance school, beauty parlour, restaurant business… “Finally, I chose a field I am familiar with. My father has been in textile business for long, my brother Mithun is a graduate in fashion technology, my mother has an eye for design and my sister-in-law, Ria too has an interest in the field. So everything fell in place for me. The only problem is that now people expect me to wear a Laksyah outfit every time I step out!” she says.
