Hardly anyone who has watched the Malayalam film Photographer would forget Thampi, the tribal boy who stole some of the attention away from Mohanlal, the hero. He had also received the State award for the best child actor.
The boy who grabbed the love of Malayalis through the ‘Chellam chadi nadakkana pulchadi...’ song marked his return as Gulikan, a tribal transgender in the film Udalazham , being screened in the Malayalam Cinema Now category at the 23rd International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK).
Mani is returning to the big screen after a long gap of 12 years. The film by Unnikrishnan Avala narrates the plight of transgenders among the tribal community.
‘Cheated by many’
On his long absence from cinema after that award-winning performance, Mani said he had been cheated by many directors who promised roles, which made him lose his faith in the industry even when he was deeply in love with acting.
It is when ‘Unniettan’ came and gave him a very different role that he saw a ray of hope, he says.
When he was called, Mani was in Karnataka, busy with ginger farming.
Triggered by past experiences, he rejected that offer. But the confidence of Unnikrishnan made him change his mind and accept the project.
Mani’s wife, who has done a small role in the movie, was a constant support for his return.
The greatest challenge was playing a transgender. He spent quite some time perfecting the body language. Unnikrishnan said his transition was amazing.
Sara Aby Kurian
