A another beauty from God’s own country is ready to enter Kollywood. Crowned Miss Kerala in 2010, Indu Thampy is making her debut in Ambika’s debut directorial venture, Nizhal, called Annabelle in Malyalam. Indu admits that she was apprehensive of doing a horror movie, especially as she is scared of ghosts! Speaking to CE, she recalls, “I thought ghost stories were all about roaming around in white saris! Plus, I’m scared of ghosts! So I had second thoughts about accepting. But it was after meeting Ambika that I was thoroughly convinced that this was the perfect debut for me!”
Indu was the chairperson of her year at All Saints College in Trivandrum and wanted to pursue an MA in literature after her graduation. But fate had other things in store. Ambika’s brother Suresh, the co-director of Nizhal, spotted her in her college and thought she would be apt for the role. “I was excited about meeting Ambika and was totally in awe of her. But she’s such a cool and friendly director, we ended up having total fun at work!” laughs Indu.
The biggest challenge was carrying the heavy camera and emoting at the same time, in this unique Point of View film. The movie was shot in a remote village in Ambika’s ancestral home, and sometimes the eerie atmosphere of the film got to her. “My colleagues would scare me and add to my fears !” she grins. “Ambika is the best director a debutant can ask for. I’m not a tech savvy person, but handling the camera and acting alongside it, has given me a rare perspective into filmmaking as a newcomer. In addition, the role gave me scope to perform . Nizhal has given me the confidence to do more Tamil movies now.”