The other day Malayalam actor Anna Ben found herself in a room where legends convene. At a prestigious roundtable a few months ago, she sat beside Shabana Azmi, a titan with five decades of cinematic mastery, and Kareena Kapoor Khan, the star who has reigned Bollywood for 25 years. It wasn’t just a seat at the table—it was a statement the meteoric ascent of an actor with just 10 films behind her; this moment underscored the undeniable impact of her craft.
Anna has now landed a role in an Indo-American production titled Yakshi with actor Babil Khan. “This was truly written in the stars,” she says. This seems a natural transition, a pan-Indian movie for the actor who won acclaim with Kottukkaali, her Tamil debut last August. In a haunting 100-minute narrative, Anna commands the screen with just one dialogue, delivering a performance so raw, so gripping, it lingers in the mind long after the credits roll. No wonder critics said, “Anna—Another Level of Talent.”
So what’s the secret sauce to such riveting performances? Be it in her debut as Baby Mol in Kumbalangi Nights, or the tough girl in Helen, or as the smitten Kaira in the blockbuster Kalki 2898 AD last year. “In my mind, I am always thinking, ‘Will this dialogue land well? Does this look work? Am I overdoing the expression?’. These thoughts keep me on the edge and compel me to give my best. For instance, in Kapella (2020), I play an innocent girl who falls in love with an auto driver and almost elopes with him. I was skeptical if there were still girls who were so innocent in today’s time. My director Mustafa sat me down and gave me some real-life instances of such cases, and once I was convinced, I gave it my best. It’s important I have conviction in my characters,” says Anna.
Anna never actively sought to pursue cinema as a career. “I studied at St Teresa’s, a Girls’s college in Kochi. I used to go for auditions during my college, not to land a movie but because it was a legit excuse to bunk classes. In any case, none of us ever got a call back with a role. So, it was just for fun. However, one of the auditions whose casting call was on Instagram led to me landing the role of Babymol in Kumbalangi Nights,” she recalls.
Although she debuted in 2019, 2023 was a busy year for Anna on the sets. However, she says 2024 had been an unsettling year. “Anxiety comes as part of an actor’s career. I had been waiting for Kalki 2898 AD and Kottukkaali to release. Whenever I feel restless, I talk to other artistes and then realise that I am not alone,” she adds.
Although Anna had to prepare for roles like the survival drama Helen (she practiced breathwork to make her lungs stronger so that they could shoot for longer hours in the freezer) and for Meena in Kottukkaali, she looks forward to playing a glamorous role. “I would love to do a dance number, provided it is tasteful and respectful of women,” she says.
A regular day in Anna’s life is usually about a workout in the gym in the morning, cooking chicken stew and appam, reading scripts and chilling with her family. This year, she looks forward to the release of her untitled romcom, a Netflix original in Tamil, and another project that she wrapped up in Malayalam recently.