Acting was not something Santhy Balachandran stumbled into. It was part of her life for some time, even when she was doing her DPhil in Anthropology at Oxford University. Yet, it was her lead role in Harold Pinter’s English play ‘The Lover’, that she did during a break in Kochi, that prompted her to seriously pursue it.
Well, she heeded her calling and will make her debut in Mollywood opposite Tovino Thomas in his next Tharangam.
Santhy had heard about the auditions when she was in Bangalore. Thereafter, she was given a synopsis and asked to do a few sequences. She did so and emailed it to the director. “I got a call soon from the team asking me whether I could come down and give a live audition,” says Santhy. “The next day I was told that I am playing the lead.” The actor will be playing a guest lecturer. “She is a very contemporary girl who is in a relationship with the character played by Tovino,” says Santhy.
Could she easily relate to her role? “The character has many similarities, as well as departures from the person I am. But, thanks to director Arun Dominic, I was given a clear picture of who she is and her background. The director had fleshed out the character quite well. He was very helpful and supportive,” adds Santhy.
Tharangam is a crime comedy. “The highlight is its humour. It is not the slapstick variety, but situational. Here the character I play doesn’t mouth funny dialogues, but ends up creating humorous situations,” says the actor.
She has finished shooting and what remains is the post-production work. “I have to dub for my character,” says Santhy. But, coming from a theatre background, how different was the movie experience? Santhy says both are two extremes, though she enjoyed the 45 days on the sets.
Santhy signed up for Tharangam much before its lead actor Tovino’s hit movies Oru Mexican Aparatha and Godha were released. So, is she aware of the audience expectations from Tovino’s next? She says it is the anticipation of taking up a new thing that gave her the jitters.
“I had a vibrant as well as a learning experience on the set. I was also nervous as I knew I am taking up a new thing in life. It was an experiment and a great leap of faith. I am not trained for this. Nevertheless, it was a lot of fun,” she says. Tharangam will have Tovino playing a sub inspector under suspension. The movie is the first production undertaken by Wunderbar Films, owned by actor Dhanush in
Malayalam.