She breezed into Bollywood with the critically acclaimed Phir Milenge, struck gold in Tollywood with Anand and later charmed the south audience playing Kamal’s cute wife in Vettayadu Vilayadu.
Kamalini Mukherjee, the bong damsel, is debuting in Malayalam with Shaji N Karun’s Kutty Srank where she plays one of the three female leads opposite Mammootty. “The Malayalam industry has been a brilliant bid. Working with such a director and cast was much more than I could have ever dreamt of,” she says.
In the film Kamalini plays Pemenna, a coastal Christian girl whose life gets hitched to the Christian theatre form Chavittunadakam and Kutty Srank, the boatman. “My character in the film is very young, naive and very much in love. In her own way, she is fiercely independent and intense. There is an undercurrent of intensity in all her indulgences. She is one of the first women to get on stage in Kerala as a part of the Chavittunadakam troupe,” she says.
Kamalini also says that while working with ace artists like Shaji N Karun and Mamootty she never felt intimidated by their presence even for a while. “Kutty Srank is the coming together of many towering figures in the industry and I had no issues working with the team.
Shaji N Karun is an absolute gentleman and sharing the scene with Mammootty was an exciting experience. The first ever Malayalam film I watched was Vidheyan and I was swept over by his brilliant performance. Mammootty is highly professional and such an intense actor. You get carried away with the scene while shooting with him because he is so into it.” Kamalini who entered tinsel town through Revathy’s Phir Milenge says she is really glad that her first film happened with Revathy. “She is such a guiding light.
Though I had done a lot of ads, cinema was a new medium for me. Working with the cast and crew of Phir Milenge was one cool deal.” She also adds that her experience in theatre was one face-saving factor when debuting in Bollywood.
“My roots are in theatre, but of course there is a big difference between what you do on stage and on camera. On the stage everything is magnified, but it gives you confidence. You are more sure of yourself and learn how to make use of body language to your benefit.”
Kamalini’s commercial breakthrough came with Anand, the hit Telugu film that won her the coveted Nandi Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. She says that her stint in Telugu industry has been great as Tollywood provides a wonderful ambience for a starter to work with. “Besides I love being in Hyderabad and I have been all over Andhra Pradesh,” she adds.
Vettayadu Vilayadu is the film that made Kamalini popular in the south with the Partha Mudhal Nale song featuring her and Kamal Hassan becoming a huge hit. “Vettayadu Vilayadu was like a dream come true. Kamal is an actor I grew up watching. Working with him was really intimidating in the beginning, but being a perfect professional he knew how to put you at ease. He is actually a very generous co-star and it worked for me. For the first time I was playing a wife and the film had some intimate scenes I was not comfortable with. I was really scared but he just walked me through it. When you are on the same boat with a veteran like him you are constantly learning,” she says.
After her notable act in Vettayadu Vilayadu, offers started pouring in but Kamalini says none fit her taste and sensibility. “Vettayadu Vilayadu was a great film to start with but the roles that followed were not the kind of work I really wanted to do. I had to avoid a number of Tamil projects, but if some great script comes up my way I will definitely consider it.”
Kamalini, basically from Kolkata, is also excited about her first Bengali film that will go on floors soon. “I have always been moving with the flow. Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, everything came naturally. I never planned anything or moved with an aim to reach a target. When a good project comes my way I do it,” she explains why she took a long time to act in a Bengali film.
Kamalini who has just finished shooting for the Telugu film Maa Annayya Bangaram says currently her kitty is full. “Then there is Chandramukhi 2 and another project starting in August,” she signs off.
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