In 2011, when Tamil actor Ajith Kumar released his 50th film, Mankatha , it was (no surprise) a box office hit. But the focus was not just on the star. The ensemble cast included a young man who played Ganesh, a Mumbai-based sub-inspector with an appealing mischievousness. The actor was Ashwin Kakumanu, and this was his first substantial cinematic role after a brief appearance earlier that year in Gautham Vasudev Menon’s Nadunisi Naaygal . “I was beginning to play with the big boys, but because I was not the lead, the responsibility of the film was not on me,” remembers the actor.
In many of our film industries, working as a supporting or “character” actor means signing a death warrant on a future as a lead. But actors like Kakumanu are challenging that notion. Their roles are small, but memorable. A few among them, like Shraddha Srinath, are comfortable playing supporting characters even after working as the lead because they have their eyes on a different kind of prize — artistic satisfaction. An unending reserve of optimism helps too, especially during times of financial uncertainty.
For Maya Krishnan, moonlighting as a clown provides some respite. “I don’t earn in lakhs (of rupees), and I still worry when the first of the month rolls around,” she confides.
This week, we profile some of these actors from the South: critically-acclaimed, hard working, and above all, dogged in their pursuit of art. Bollywood has not been left out either, and we speak with Jim Sarbh and others who are charting their own journey.
Ashwin Kakumanu
Chennai: The actor, who was seen in notable Tamil films like Mankatha , and AR Murugadoss’ 7aum Arivu , actually started out wanting to be a director. With his first camcorder, the then 16-year-old made short films, enlisting his friends to act, and essayed a few roles himself “out of necessity”. Soon though, he decided that filmmaking required more life experience, and switched to acting.
He was judged for taking on character roles, and his decision to act in a web-series, Nila Nila Odi Va , a vampire-themed romcom shot for the streaming platform Viu, was also questioned. “It’s all acting,” says Kakumanu, whose upcoming projects include Aivar , a look at corporate and political lobbying through the eyes of an investigative journalist, and Ithu Vedhalam Solum Kathai , a fantastical story about a video game designer co-starring Aishwarya Rajesh and Abhay Deol. “Most actors become businessmen after some time — it’s about numbers and perceptions. You have to keep reminding yourself to be creative.”
Aju Varghese
Kochi: In the eight years since he débuted with Malarvaadi Arts Club , Varghese has done over 80 films, but was cast as the ‘lead’ in only one. “And it bombed at the box office,” he says with a laugh. However, the 33-year-old does not count it as a loss; he prefers the freedom that the ‘character actor’ tag brings him. “I want to choose roles that I can sink my teeth into, rather than look for the limelight.”
Varghese is not, as he puts it, a “born actor”. He wanted to be a director. “But I realised it is tough and I don’t have the maturity for it yet.” With a slew of films lined up — from the Mammootty-starrer Madhuraraja to his first production, Love Action Drama — he counts his rapport with his peers as one of his blessings. He confesses to WhatsApping ‘seniors’, like (actor) Siddique, for their opinion on his experimentative looks. He has also forged great working chemistry with several directors, including Ranjith Sankar, with whom he has done six films. What about venturing into other industries? “Malayalam’s biggest advantage is that it offers interesting material. So why not take advantage of it?” he asks.
Shraddha Srinath
Bengaluru: In just three years, Srinath has made her mark in many industries: a debut in Malayalam ( Kohinoor , 2015), followed by the Kannada hit U-Turn (2016) and her entry to Kollywood, Vikram Vedha (2017). “It’s been challenging, but the key is to understand the nuances of every industry,” shares the actor. “My success in U-Turn did not matter when I ventured into Tamil, a language I wasn’t familiar with. This has kept me on my toes.”
She has several films scheduled for release — Rustom in Kannada, and in Kollywood, an untitled psychological thriller with Arulnithi. There is also Maara (where she will meet former co-actor R Madhavan), and Milan Talkies in Bollywood. “I play Mythili, a small-town girl from UP,” she reveals about her role in the latter. “The film is set in a time when single screens were on the verge of being replaced by multiplexes. Cinema has an interesting role to play in this love story,” she says.
Rakendu Mouli Vennelakanti
Hyderabad: His first stage performance was in kindergarten, and he fell for the claps he received after it. “I loved the echoing sounds,” Vennelakanti laughs. He describes a childhood spent at dance, singing and acting classes, and is candid about the fact that his father, a Telugu lyricist, helped him land his first gig as a voiceover artist. “ I studied engineering, but knew I would make a mediocre engineer, so I started acting,” he shares. Short films led to a lead role in a web-series, Ctrl Alt Del , a role in a Telugu film that never released, and now the actor is gearing up for two films where he plays the lead. While playing a supporting role in Gautham Menon’s Sahasam Swasaga Sagipo (2016), he penned some of the rap verses for the ‘ Shokilla ’ song in the film, and has also lent his lyrics to two Telugu songs in Mani Ratnam’s upcoming bilingual film, Nawaab (Chekka Chivantha Vaanam in Tamil).
Pooja Devariya
Chennai: After the success of Katheyondu Shuruvagide , her critically-acclaimed Kannada début, Devariya will soon start filming for her next in Tamil, Arokya , with Vishal as the lead. “For the South Indian context, I play the second lead,” she explains, laughing. The actor is no stranger to such labels, starting with the “character role” she essayed in Selva Raghavan’s Mayakkan Enna (2011). “I was 18 then, and I knew I would get calls to play the hero’s sister or the heroine’s friend,” she says.
Declining a slew of predictable offers, she shiffted her focus to other mediums, working with Chennai-based Stray Factory on theatrical performances and YouTube sketches. The work got her recognised by director Manikandan, who she has worked with in Kutramae Thandanai and Aandavan Kattalai (both released in 2016). Nine years on, the actor is certain she does not want to stop experimenting. In addition to a web series on Viu, titled Door No 403 , she hopes to carve a space for herself in the digital media landscape. “Maybe even a Netflix original!”
Maya Krishnan
Chennai: Krishnan’s first movie was Vaanavil Vaazhkai (2015). “I was ‘discovered’ at a singing competition. The movie ran for three days,” she laughs. She then shifted her focus to theatre, and is a practicing clown doctor. “It was definitely a struggle when I moved here from Madurai. I had to pay rent and bills, so I took up roles I was not excited about,” she says candidly. Now, she is able to make ends meet, “but I still drive my old Activa”.
Her upcoming films include Shankar’s 2.0 and Gautham Menon’s Dhruva Natchathiram . “Working on the latter especially has been a great experience,” she says. “Thanks to the hierarchy in the industry, character actors usually get treated differently, but we were even put up at the same hotel while filming on location in Europe. It has never happened before. Working with Vikram, Simran, Parthiban, Radhika — it was great. Despite the delays, this is one movie I will be eternally grateful to have worked on,” she adds.
Roshan Mathew
Kochi: Mathew is still on a high, fielding messages on social media commending his role as an introverted college student in Anjali Menon’s Koode . Barely eight films old, the actor is clear about what he wants: “I don’t want to do a character that anyone can do,” he says.
The stage has been the 26-year-old’s home since 2011. “I didn’t think about the logistics [when he took a year after college to study theatre at The Drama School Mumbai], where my money would come from, or how stable a career option theatre is,” he shares. Plays like Rajit Kapur’s The Glass Menagerie followed, along with a few ads and a web series for Sony, Tanlines . With a few big films in hand — including Geetu Mohandas’ Moothon and Shanavas K Bavakutty’s next — Mathew says he has a five year plan. “I want to work with directors like Rajeev Ravi, Aashiq Abu and Lijo Jose Pellissery, who are redefining what we think a lead actor should be like.”
Lakshmipriyaa Chandramouli
Chennai: She was a sportsperson and HR professional before she became an actor. The transition, Chandramouli says, was quite natural. “I was always active in extracurricular activities and was interested in stage acting. I attended a workshop by Evam and later joined them full-time. From being behind-the-scenes to getting on stage, it took a lot of work and I am glad it happened,” she says, adding it took over a hundred auditions before she started landing roles. She is now working on two upcoming films, which include Vasanth’s Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum .
An avid frisbee and cricket player, Chandramouli draws parallels between cinema and sports. “Both teach you how to face failure.” Perhaps that is what helped her handle the scathing social media comments she received after she played a woman having an extramarital affair in the 2017 short film, Lakshmi . “The bouquets and brickbats were a new experience. But I understand most people were affected by the film in some way,” she says.
Ashish Verma and Priyanshu Painyuli
Painyuli and Verma at Versova Beach, in Mumbai
Mumbai: Vikramaditya Motwane’s 2018 Bollywood film, Bhavesh Joshi Superhero , centres around three friends who create a YouTube channel to expose injustice in their city. Painyuli (left, in picture) and Verma, who essay the leads, have had a very different cinematic journey compared to their co-actor Harshvardhan Kapoor (son of Anil Kapoor). “I’m broke,” says Verma jokingly, when asked if there is anything that people might not know about him. Painyuli chimes in, “I’m still looking for work.”
Both actors cut their teeth in theatre. Painyuli worked with Shernaz Patel and Rajit Kapur before travelling the world for two years with the cast of Taj Express , an international musical show, and Verma worked as an Assistant Director in Mumbai while acting in plays. The duo credit Bollywood’s star casting director, Mukesh Chhabra, with giving them their big breaks.
Pankaj Tripathi
26dmc Pankaj Tripathi 1
For someone who won himself a special mention at the National Awards for Newton (2017), Tripathi cannot satisfy the artist in him enough. “As an actor, the process of playing a different role each time is what satisfies me,” says the Gangs of Wasseypur actor. The commercial scale of a film and box office numbers are far from relevant to him; he concentrates on the sensibility of the role. “ The role should keep me hooked as an actor; I should spend sleepless nights thinking about how I’d do a certain scene,” he adds. The 41-year-old, who debuted in 2004, has starred in films as diverse as the second instalment of the Dabanng franchise, to critics-favourite Nil Battey Sannata . What differentiates such varied genres of cinema? “Apart from the hotels and facilities, nothing!” Tripathi will soon be seen in an Amazon Prime crime-drama, Mirzapur .
