Two years ago, Anna Ben was seen in PS Vinothraj’s Kottukkaali (2024), a quiet, adamant girl with resilience beyond her agency and strength beyond circumstances. Off-screen, however, she is nothing like the intense characters she so often inhabits. So, where is the chirpy Anna we see off-screen?. The answer comes seven years into her debut with Con City, directed by debutant Harish Durairaj. “I think life needs a bit of drama,” she laughs when the contrast is pointed out. “While my characters look intense, the process is actually fun. But honestly, Con City will completely change the track of my career. This is a completely riotous film.”
Anna Ben shares screen with Arjun Das as his partner-in-crime, Mithra, playing a key role in planning large-scale scams. The fun that she mentions is amplified multifold, thanks to the chaos provided by prominent comedians Yogi Babu, VTV Ganesh, Ramesh Thilak, Imman Annachi, and even Vadivukkarasi, so much that Anna Ben admits that she, along with the other cast members, “were struggling to hold their laughs” on set. Interestingly, this is also the first Tamil film where Anna has dialogues as Kottukkaali had her largely emoting through her eyes. “When I started the project, I confessed to Harish that I can't pick up Tamil so fast, and he assured me that things would be fine. On set, he is super fast when it comes to explaining scenes. I thought, as a non-native speaker, only I was not able to follow what he said, but even Vadivukkarasi ma’am said she didn't understand,” she says, giving credit to Harish for pushing her to explore a character, completely different from what she has worked on in her previous films.
“Now that I have done Con City, I want to explore every genre out there. Action, drama, romance, and everything else,” hopes Anna, but holds herself back from the comedy genre. “Although I love comedy, I am very scared of working in the genre,” she remarks, before adding, “I was not sure how I could pull that off, but I had a blast laughing at the jokes of the other cast members more than my humorous parts, but that is a space that I truly want to explore more.” Anna’s fear of the genre also partially comes from her feeling of “not being prepared enough”. “Most of my films demand certain preparation before shooting. I’m so used to that, but here, on most days, I came with a blank slate. Harish keeps telling me, ‘paathukalam’ and that was pressure for me. I was that sincere student on set, and everyone made fun of me,” recalls.
While Anna and Arjun were set to star together in a few films before Con City, those projects never materialised. However, the two stayed in touch, hopeful that the right collaboration would come along. When Harish’s film finally took off, Anna recalls expressing her admiration for Arjun on the very first day of shooting. “Most of my movies fall into a similar pattern. I’m usually scared to loosen up. So, I was very surprised by Arjun’s role in GBU. Those kinds of performances are very difficult for me. I’ve been a fan of his since Kaithi. He constantly experiments with different genres and is so open to adapting to a wide range of characters,” she says.
While Anna continues to seek out diverse roles, there is one storytelling cliche she has grown weary of. “The moment directors say, ‘This is a bold character,’ that’s where I draw the line now. I think the word ‘bold’ has been overused, and often without understanding its nuance. We first need to ask ourselves what truly constitutes a bold character before casually attaching that label to one,” she says. The actor also points out that while she is open to stories tackling heavy or sensitive subjects, many fail to approach them with the care they deserve. “Sometimes, these subjects are included just for the sake of having a label. There’s no depth or honesty to them, and I don’t like that. Stories dealing with such themes require extensive research, thoughtful understanding, and, most importantly, they need to be viewed from a female perspective,” she elaborates.
This understanding of cinema also shapes how Anna views theatrical releases and the metrics of success that often define them. Bring up Kottukkaali’s modest box office run despite its widespread critical acclaim, and she is quick to dismiss the notion of it being a setback. “Kottukkaali was always envisioned as an experimental film. Vinoth sir had a very clear vision for it. I never felt the audience rejected it because, for me, getting the opportunity to act in a film like that is a huge success in itself. The real achievement lies in finding a script you truly love, collaborating with people who genuinely want to make good cinema, and seeing that journey through to completion. Everything else, including audience reception and commercial success, is an added bonus,” she signs off.