BENGALURU: Madhu Mailankody has something special to look forward to this festive season. With her acting debut in the Nayanthara-starrer Tamil devotional comedy Mookuthi Amman, Madhu – known for emceeing sports events, including the Indian Premier League – says she got more than she bargained for. Madhu had never given acting a thought, but she took the leap of faith when director-actor Rj Balaji asked her to take up the role.
“We go back a long time since we meet while hosting events. When he offered me the role, though I was nervous, I took it up,” says Madhu, who is currently emceeing IPL matches from Mumbai. Originally hailing from Kasargod, she shuffles between Bengaluru, Mangaluru and Mumbai. “I am so used to living out of a suitcase,” she adds.
While emceeing is spontaneous, acting needs a script. “That was tough. Especially having to remember lines in Tamil, which I am not fluent in. But Balaji allowed me to improvise as long as the punch line and delivery came out fine,” adds Madhu, who speaks English, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tulu, and an old dialect of Kannada.
It’s impossible to miss her excitement when she recalls working with Nayanthara. “She is called a superstar for a reason. She is always on time and I have never seen her throwing any tantrum,” she says. Recalling a scene with Nayanthara, Madhu says the first take went well but she had to redo her dialogues for the second camera’s angle.
“Nayanthara was so sweet, she was not required in that take but she offered to stay back if I needed her as a reference,” she says, sharing that the scene has turned into a viral meme. The movie will be out on Nov. 14 on Disney Hotstar. It is going to be dubbed in Telugu as Ammoru Thalli.