Vijay sparked off quite a rage when he landed in Trivandrum to celebrate the record-breaking spree of Pokkiri in 2007. Fans gathered in front of the hotel to get a glimpse of the star and the premises of a nearby flat was in equal chaos. “We were staying at the flat and I was one among those creating the ruckus. I am a hardcore Vijay fan and even after the release of Bairava I can’t really believe I played his heroine. The feeling has yet to sink in,” says Keerthy Suresh, who is riding high with a handful of solid projects in her kitty.
Keerthy made her debut with a Priyadarshan film starring Mohanlal in the lead, the dream launchapad for any newbie. After Ring Master, her second film, she just vanished from the scene and a couple of years down the road she is one of the most popular faces in the South industry. The actress says she was not on any deliberate hiatus, “it’s just that I am getting too many irresistible offers from Tamil and Telugu. But chances are there that you may soon see me in a Malayalam film, though nothing is finalised yet.” Keerthy adds she is totally at home with all languages and has never felt like an outsider.
“We speak Tamil at home and since I am fluent in that, I find Tamil a wee bit easier. But Telugu is one difficult language,” she laughs.
The actress has just wrapped up Nenu Local, her second Telugu film which she calls a ‘true rom-com’. “The film has a romantic track, humour, drama, sentiments, all in it,” she says. Keerthy also finds Nani, the hero of Nenu Local, a great co-star. “Despite being in the industry for a while he shows the enthusiasm of a fresher. He is always willing to experiment and takes all suggestions seriously. He is an actor who gives you space to perform.”
Her filmography is not too-long, but Keerthy has shared the screen with some A-list actors and seems quite happy about the way her career is shaping up. “In my debut I had a senior actor like Lal uncle, and when I started doing other languages I was paired opposite a crop of upcoming stars. Then there was Thodari, and working with Dhanush sir was a wonderful learning experience. My latest co-actor Vijay is a great performer and it’s very difficult to cope with him, especially in dance moves,” she adds.
Keerthy says she considers everything from the production house to technicians before signing a film. “I look into the team, the story line, how well the character suits me and a lot other things. I invest a considerable amount of time and energy selecting films.” She adds that the time she entered films, she already had another career option in hand. “I was planning to be a fashion designer as that’s what I had studied and that’s what I only know. Even now I really wish I could do the couture for my movies, but now it’s not practical,’ she winds up.