Iniya might have been taking it slow in Mollywood for some time now, but 2017 is different, says the Swarna Kaduva actress, who has a string of Malayalam movies lined up in her kitty this year.
The most anticipated one is Ranjith’s Puthan Panam, starring Mamootty, which is hitting the theatres this week.
“It’s one of the biggest breaks I could get in Malayalam, working with such a veteran actor. I feel blessed to start this year afresh with Mamookka and I am positive the movie will work wonders in my career, too. Everyone scared me by saying that Mamookka has this strict aura around him.
Yes, that is the case when he is on the sets playing his character. Outside,however, he is this great man who kept advising and giving me many tips on acting,” says Iniya, who brushed shoulders with the actor in quite a number of sequences.
In Puthan Panam, Iniya plays a Tamil woman named Sundari who flees her state owing to various personal issues. In Kerala, she is earning her living doing a small job. “My character is quite powerful,” she adds.
The talented actor is also playing the heroine in director Samuthirakani’s Akasha Mittayi, which went on the floors recently. Iniya plays Radhika, who is a quarelsome and nagging wife. She does not take no for an answer. Another negative is that she is very materialistic.
“This leads to friction between her husband (Jayasankar) who is a more practical man and her,” says Iniya. “The movie explores how such a relation affects the children over the years.”
The film is a remake of the director’s Tamil film Appa. “However, it is not exactly the same. From what I understand, it is a more subtle film which has been made especially for the Malayalam audience. Also, Radhika’s character,unlike in the Tamil film, is shown to be less eccentric,” adds Iniya.
The actress also will soon begin shooting for a Tamil project, Pottu, which will have a May release after which she will begin shooting for another Malayalam movie.
“A lot of good roles in Malayalam are coming my way,” she says.