Some knit their brows. Others stepped in tune with her steps. When Rimi Tomy stormed into conservative Malayali mindsets years ago, the majority could not digest the dance steps that accompanied her songs. “Today, putting in a few steps with the song has become an integral part of stage shows. So much so there’s hardly a stage show where the singer does not tap a foot!” says an ever smiling Rimi, the bundle of energy who’s hard to miss these days, either on the radio or on television.
Tell her that it looks like anchoring has taken a toll on her singing career and Rimi is quick to refute it. “No way! I was very much around,” she says citing her songs from recent films like ‘2 Harihar Nagar’ and ‘Vellathooval’. Rimi, who entered professional singing in 1999 through the Moovattupuzha based band ‘Angel Voice’ debuted in Mollywood with the superhit song ‘Chingamasam’ in ‘Meesa Madhavan.’ “I rendered songs in different styles to music director Vidyasagar before he zeroed in on me and my style of singing for ‘Chinga masam’,” Rimi recounts. The popular song earned Rimi a number of awards including the Film Critics Award. Hand in hand with singing popular numbers, Rimi stepped in front of the camera with ‘Ganaveethi’ on Doordarshan and the phone-in programme ‘Safari’ on Asianet. Her recent tryst with television has been as the anchor of the popular chat show ‘Rim Jhim’ that has completed 100 episodes on Asianet Plus.
“I was not confident to handle a celebrity chat show like ‘Rim Jhim’ but after the initial hiccups, I mustered courage to carry on,” she says with a laugh. Celebrities from different walks of life will vouch for hearty moments with the anchor on the show. “I was comfortable being with people from the music and film field and I never prepare before the show. But when celebrities from politics started appearing on the show, I was forced to research from the grassroot level ‘coz that’s one field that I’ve absolutely no clue about!” There have been blunders, she admits. “But all those who have appeared on my show have taken it in the right spirit. They know with what amount of seriousness a person like me should be taken,” she quips. Rimi is proud to have achieved a feat that nobody else has. “I made M A Baby, Minister for Education, sing on my show,” she says
proudly.
Marriage has not changed her a wee bit. “Why should I change? My husband, Royce Kizhakoodan, and his family accepted me into their family for what I am. I’m thankful for their support to take my career forward,” she says.
Rimi, who shares a good rapport with a number of music directors including Alphonse and Deepak Dev, has a number of films ready for release. “Incidentally, it’s Vidyasagar who has given me two of the best songs (‘Chinga Masam’ and ‘Aarumukhan’ from ‘Mulla’) in my career,” says the singer who has been undergoing training in Hindustani and carnatic music. You’ll soon hear her in ‘Chattambinaadu’, ‘Black Stalin’, ‘My Big Daddy’, ‘Body Guard’, ‘Chinna Muthu Manikya Muthu’, ‘Chemistry’ and ‘Kappalu Muthalali.’
But why has she not tried her luck in other languages? “Hmm...what do I say? Believe me, I’ve never been ambitious. Sometimes I feel that’s my biggest mistake. But I’m happy the way my life is moving on. There’s only one life. Live it to the fullest.”
parvathynayar@gmail.com