“All through the film, I had to wear one pair of earrings. And since my clothes and make-up had to gel with the theme and the film’s colour (red-hued palette) scheme, I had to wear ordinary clothes. My make-up person’s main job was to paint dark circles under my eyes and see if my bruises looked right,” Lakshmi Manchu quips in her unmistakeable style.
The psychological thriller W/O Ram , releasing this Friday, features Lakshmi as Deeksha, a woman trying to unravel the mystery behind her husband’s death.
Director Vijay Yelakanti had worked with concept artist Omkar Daware for the mise-en-scene or ‘put in scene’ approach to a realistic narrative. Lakshmi Manchu describes her work in the film as a different and difficult journey: “Each time I take up a film, I don’t look at what screen time I get. I focus on the complete picture. Had I been only self-centric, I wouldn’t have played a frail 70-year-old in Oo Kodathara UlikkiPadathara . I know heroines today who hesitate to take up women-centric films thinking they’ll get slotted into serious roles and won’t get the bigger, glamorous films.”
She remembers taking up Chandamama Kathalu that had an ensemble cast, and not expecting the moon from it but pleasantly surprised when two prime awards came her way. “It’s taken me a lot to be an actor and there’s no way I’ll turn down a good role,” she says, referring to the patriarchal ways of the industry in which it’s still uncommon to find female actors hailing from film families.
Enacting Deeksha as she transforms from a victim to taking things into her hands required focus, says Lakshmi. “The second part of it wasn’t tough. I don’t take things lying down and could relate to the later part. The initial portions where Deeksha is helpless, standing on pins and needles and returning to an empty house was so frustrating. She’s a normal woman who’s suddenly left searching for answers, all alone. This was tough for me because I’ve always had a strong support system.”
Lakshmi says she leaned back on her training days as an actor in New York to enact a nerve-wracking character and not let it affect her. “I’ve been trained by incredible teachers who’ve taught me how to separate who I am from what I do. You can’t let the character’s journey have a debilitating effect on you. However, as a human certain things seep through. In my case, when I went home to my four-year-old daughter, I snapped out of work mode immediately.” I can give it in writing that my web series (Mrs Subbulakshmi) will be one of the best in the country.
Playing Deeksha, she evaluates, has made her even more empathetic towards issues faced by women: “I feel happy that I am able to do a film that’s socially conscious and shows a woman standing up for herself.”
‘Tumhari Sulu’ remake
Talking of women finding their own voice, Lakshmi is also a part of the Tamil remake of the heartwarming Tumhari Sulu. Titled Kaatrin Mozhi , the remake is directed by Radha Mohan and stars Jyothika. Lakshmi reprises Neha Dhupia’s role. “My director asked me to be myself. In a couple of instances I said f*** off and then switched to bugger off because I want people to hear what I say, not get beeped out,” she laughs.
She praises Radha Mohan’s sensibilities towards filmmaking, and talks about the camaraderie she shares with Jyothika. Commenting on Jyothika’s fluent Tamil, she says, “I keep telling her that she cheated Suriya into believing that she was a Punjabi who learnt Tamil.” On a different note, Lakshmi says she stuck a rapport with Jyothika as a working mother with common aspirations.
Also in Lakshmi’s roster of things is the forthcoming comic web series Mrs Subbulakshmi for Yupp TV, written by Balabhadrapatruni Ramani. “I can give it in writing that my web series will be one of the best in the country,” states Lakshmi.
Before we finish the conversation, it veers back to W/O Ram . Her brother Manchu Manoj has seen it and “loved it.” As for the others, Lakshmi says, “We worked hard for a year making the film. I won’t show it in preview theatres. They can buy tickets.”
