Sometime in 1979, a young stylish girl danced and sang her way into Tamil filmgoers’ hearts, leaving them with a memory as sweet as the film she acted in — K. Balachander’s Ninaithaale Inikkum . Three years before that, she played the lead in his Anthuleni Katha , a remake of the superhit Aval Oru Thodarkadhai .
Bollywood beckoned, and so did politics, but Jaya Prada has always made it a point to maintain her links with dance and cinema. It is this love for emoting that sees her return to the Tamil screen, a decade after Dasavatharam, with Yagam (the big-budget Sarabha in Telugu) and MA Nishad’s Keni ( Kinaru in Malayalam). The actress has just finished shooting for Keni , co-starring Parthiban, and is waiting to dub for the movie. In a telephonic interview, the actress, once described by master auteur Satyajit Ray as the most beautiful, speaks about her career choices:
It’s been a decade since you’ve been seen in a Tamil film…
True. The audience here has always shown immense love, though I’ve worked in just a handful of movies. But, they still remember and refer to those movies while speaking about me. That makes me very happy.
What about the script of Keni tempted you to sign up for it?
The story, and the fact that it deals with water. While working in Rampur (her constituency in Uttar Pradesh), I’ve seen women wait in line for a turn at the streetside hand pump. This film is about water scarcity, and it is a universal subject. Who is the custodian of water? That’s the question the film raises. I am fascinated by my character Indira, the widow of a geologist, who wants to fulfil her husband’s desire to make water available to all. Also, the cause of farmers is close to my heart. This film is an ode to all who struggle for water, walking long distances to just fill one pot. It falls in the category of ‘meaningful cinema’ — something that I’m very keen to be part of.
What kind of films do you want to do?
If you see, my recent outings have all been in roles that are hatke — from Pranayam (Malayalam) to Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna (Kannada), where I played Kittur Rani Chennamma. I want to play roles of substance, where I have something to contribute, where I can help push forward a thought. The same thing happened with Keni ; the producers were the same people who did Pranayam , and there was a comfort level.
You’ve led a very active life, across fields. Do those experiences reflect in your performance?
Always. I’ve travelled from the red carpet that is the cinema industry to the heat and dust of Rampur. I dip into all of that to hone my performance. But, I feel my best is yet to come.
You say you revel in being your own person…
Definitely. I’ve never gone by what others think. Even in movies, I dressed the way I felt was right, mostly in saris and salwars, and the rare Western dress. I hated being compared to others. In Parliament, I did not believe in wearing only saris; I have sported long coats.
Do dance and music continue to drive you?
They always will. I’ve been dancing since I was five or six. My ballet Amrapali has travelled across States.
How has politics changed you?
Those who have seen me earlier would vouch for my tenderness. The rough and tumble of politics have changed me as a person; I have become strong and tolerant. I used to be very shy and struggle to construct even one sentence — I was referred to as ‘goongi gudiya’ (dumb doll). Now I can speak extempore for two hours!
