Exclusive! I want to be a part of big films that are celebrated in movie halls: Samyuktha Menon

Malayalam actress Samyuktha Menon has been dabbling with films across the south for a while, but it is the Yogaraj Bhat directorial Gaalipata 2 that is going to mark her debut in Kannada cinema. Samyuktha is paired with Diganth in the film, which is releasing in theatres on August 12. Meanwhile, though, it turns out that the actress is getting a Kannada debut of sorts with the dubbed version of her Malayalam film, Kaduva, in which she teams up with Mollywood superstar Prithviraj Sukumaran. “Gaalipata 2 is my first film in Kannada. Honestly, when I got the call for a role, I had no idea about how big a deal it was, until friends and family in Bengaluru told me about the original film and that it is a cult movie. But then I took it up without a second thought, and now, looking back, I think it was a great decision. This is my first multi-starrer film, and every character had its own space and weightage,” said the actress, who was in Bengaluru on Friday to promote the Shaji Kailas directorial action entertainer, an event in which Prithviraj was the cynosure of all eyes.

“Prithviraj has said that Kaduva is about male ego and the tussle between two strong men. But if you take my character or Kaduvakunnel Kuruvachan’s (Prithviraj’s character) family out of the film, it would be very flat. The drama surrounding the family gives a feel to the film,” she had said during the press meet. Later, when we caught up with the actress for a quick chat, we asked her what she thought about being a part of a film that is so testosterone driven. Shaji Kailas films are known to have women characters just as props. “Yet at the same time, there’s Aaram Thampuran which had the wonderful character by Manju Warrier that is absolutely unforgettable. Yes, Kaduva is about the male ego, but the film is incomplete without my character or his family – they are quite pivotal to the plot. It was always my dream to do big films because these are the kind of movies that reach mass audiences. I am a part of Kaduva because this is a film that I would want to watch on the big screen. I wanted to have the experience of working with Shaji sir or Prithviraj the actor. I don’t mind being a part of a film that reaches a lot of people and will have celebration in the theatre. The part is not negligible,” she asserts.

But considering that Malayalam cinema is now at a stage where everything that comes from its stable is looked at with rapt attention, wouldn’t a film like Kaduva set it back by a decade or two? “There is no going back. See, I did a film called Bheemla Nayak in Telugu and watched it in a theatre. Honestly, my whole idea of watching a film in a theatre was redefined that day. I have been going to movies back home in Kerala for years – we go to the hall, watch the film, come back home and discuss it. But when I watched Bheemla Nayak, I saw a lot of happiness and energy in the hall. I want to see that,” she says.

Kaduva, produced by Prithviraj Productions was slated to release on June 30, but has now been pushed ahead to July 7.