Lakshmi Gopalaswamy, the Kannada girl who made it big in Malayalam films, has had a few dream opportunities even at home. Among them are starring against mega star Vishnuvardhan. She plays the lead in award winning director P. Seshadri’s film Vidaaya releasing on June 05. She puts down a few thoughts on the film and her role in it.
The recent passing away of Arun Shanbaug, the nurse who lived in a vegetative state after surviving a a brutal rape in 1973, raises many questions for us as a society. While the right to live is incorporated in para 21 in the constitution of India, we do not have a provision for “the right to die”. Suggestions are being put forth to make a provision for “dignified death” for an individual suffering an incurable ailment or something else.
My film is set against the backdrop of the issue of “good death” or passive euthanasia. Meera and Vasu are a happily married couple, and their fate is changed with an accident, disabling Vasu and confining him to the bed in a vegetative state. The onus is on Meera to keep the family (with their two children) going; she is emotional and financial anchor and she does it with with love and sincerity.
Vasu desperately wants to put an end to his life. Much against Meera’s wishes, she files for a petition for euthanasia on his behalf. She faces agony on being viewed by the public as a woman who is trying to kill her husband. In the meanwhile, the Supreme Court of India calls for a renewed public debate on euthanasia. Vidaaya subtly explores the social and cultural angles to euthanasia through the relationship of Vasu and Meera.
When Seshadri sir approached me for this role, I was excited, but at the same time I was nervous whether I would be able to pull it off. Meera’s character has many layers – she is emotionally and physically drained out, and financially challenged. She also has the responsibility of her two children – shielding them from the emotional trauma that she is going through helping a person get a dignified death.
It took me quite some mental preparation to get into the complexities of this character. Of course it helped that I had excellent co-artistes and a wonderful director. It was a challenge to hold on to the basic state of Meera and colour it with all the vyabhichari bhavas . Getting roles like this is rare. Cinema, I believe, could be an effective catalyst for social change and progress – then Vidaaya attempts to bring to notice and sensitise people subtly to the issue of euthanasia.
