A neesh Ravi calls himself “a fortunate actor” having done a host of meaty roles.A post graduate in Malayalam literature and a diploma holder in journalism, Aneesh comes from theatre and has anchored various television shows as well. He currently plays the lead in ‘Karyam Nissaram’, aired on Kairali TV, Monday to Thursday at 9 p.m.and in thespian K. Balachander’s Tamil serial ‘Santhinilayam’, telecast on Jaya TV, Monday to Thursday, at 9 p.m.
Hooked to acting
I always wanted to be an actor and my parents, Raveendran and Ambika, never discouraged me. I used to do amateur plays in school at Chirayinkeezhu and got associated with K.Raghu’s Natakayogam, one among the oldest theatre troupes in the capital city. The one-man play, ‘Choonda’, was a widely appreciated work. Later I worked in professional troupes, such as Padmasree, Souparnika and Sanghachetana and with mimics troupes as well. I won the first prize in mimicry during the Kerala University Youth Festival in 1994.
Theatre days
Theatre has given me many memorable roles, thanks to my gurus the late Radhakrishnan and Madhu N. Nair. Like the one in ‘Ravanaprabhu’, the lead role in ‘Overbridge’, and the role of Karnan in ‘Soothaputhran’…
On television
My first serial was Sajan’s ‘Snehatheeram’ (Doordarshan). It was the role in ‘Mohanam’ which gave me a break. The roles in ‘Minnukettu’ (Surya TV), ‘Sthree’ (Asianet), ‘Manassariyathe’ (Surya TV) and ‘Alippazham’ (Surya TV) were totally different from each other. I did the titular role in the serial ‘Sree Narayana Guru’, which won a State award (2005). Then came theTamil serials, ‘Meghala’ (Sun TV) and Balachander sir’s ‘Santhinilayam’, which is nearing completion. I always ensure that I don’t sign too many projects at the same time because quality matters, not quantity. I’ve anchored shows such as ‘Adipoli Swad’ and ‘Thillana Thillana’ ‘City Girls’ (Asianet), and ‘Oru Nunakatha’ (WE).
Current projects
‘Karyam Nissaram’ is the story of Mohanakrishnan, a village officer, and his wife Sathyabhama, a lawyer, who have differences of opinion on every topic. But they patch up by the end of the day. As of now, I haven’t committed myself to any new project. I’ve done a few films as well.
Direction
I’ve started making short films since many feel that I’ve it in me to be a good director. When my team had emerged winners at two editions of ‘Tharotsavam’ (reality show for television celebrities on Kairali TV) wherein all the acts were scripted and directed by me, judges commented that I should try direction and that boosted my confidence.