The coy, half-sari-clad girl we have seen in a variety of deglam roles is a far cry from the happy-go-lucky, jeans-sporting Nandita who likes riding bikes in real life. It was for the sake of films she started wearing traditional outfits, she says — remember Attakathi , her debut? To this day, she does not understand why the hit film’s director, Ranjith, chose her to play the village-based Poorni, though he had only seen her in a pair of jeans and T-shirt in her home town, Bengaluru.
“But I’ve begun to feel comfortable in these clothes now. My roles present me with opportunities to see myself in ways I never thought I would. In fact, I loved the way I was captured on film for Mundasupatti . Again in my next, Idam Porul Yaeval , I play a farm girl where I rear cows and goats which gave me the shudders while shooting. I got myself a tan to suit the tough nature of the role. Never thought life would change so much,” she laughs.
If it was her role as Kumudha in
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A chatterbox by her own admission, this quick learner didn’t take too long to pick up Tamil either. She will soon be dubbing for her films. In her spare time, she has also mastered driving.
“These are not things you’d expect from the tearful Kalaivani I played in Mundasupatti .”
The actress, who also wants to play sophisticated roles, is getting plenty of offers from other industries. “I get offers from Malayalam and Telugu but I’m so busy with Tamil that I don’t even get time to visit home (Bengaluru). But I shouldn’t complain,” she says, making it evident that Kumudha is happy.
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