It was a welcome that actor Manju Warrier was unlikely to have expected, but could not but be charmed by.
On Tuesday morning, it was as if the entire Government Higher Secondary School for Girls, Cotton Hill, had turned out for a glimpse of the actor. The school auditorium was packed. The students who could not manage to find space inside lined both sides, craning their necks every now and then, while some others clambered atop benches.
Returning to the school where portions of her latest film ‘Udaharanam Sujatha’ were shot, the actor was greeted by loud cheers and claps, the faces of students sporting wide smiles and loopy grins.
The actor too seemed at ease among the crowd, waving often and reaching out to shake hands with the students.
Ms. Warrier said she had travelled to within and outside the State for the promotion of her film, but nowhere had she met with such an enthusiastic reception.
Talking about the film, the actor said she had shot for the film for nearly a month at the school, with some of the students and even teachers acting in it, and had some pleasant memories of it. “This is why, probably more than you, we were keen on coming back here,” she said.
She urged the students to watch the film with their families. “This film will help you understand why it is important to dream about what you want to become in life, the need for a goal,” she said. It is also a film about the relationship between a mother and her child, she reminded them.
Ms. Warrier asked the students how many of the them liked Mathematics, before quipping that those who did not like the subject should watch the film as it showed some easy-to-learn tricks to make studies easier.
Thanking the students for their love and warmth, she urged them to study well and contribute to society, and remain happy and at peace.
The film’s director ‘Phantom’ Praveen and producer Joju George also spoke.
