Trisha has been part of the Tamil film industry for a decade and yet retains a freshness, and continues to work in big films while others have faded away. Visibly excited as she talks about director Gautham Menon’s action film with Thala Ajith, Thala55, Trisha says she’s in a very happy space today with both Tamil and Telugu films in her kitty.
Though Boologam is ready for release, it’s her Thala55 (as the movie is being called currently) that’s been the talk of the town. She’s paired with the ‘younger’ Ajith and there’s been a lot of speculation about her role considering Anushka Shetty too is part of the project. Trisha says, “It’s definitely something different from what I have done earlier. Initially, when Gautham narrated the script, I did have a few apprehensions about the role because there was another heroine. But then for me, it was Gautham and how wrong could it go? Ajith goes through various stages in life and ours is a little love story where we share the lighter part of the film.”
The actress has always played the solo lead and sharing screenspace with another top actress is a new experience for her. Says Trisha, “At this point, there are a lot of multi-starrers. I was always apprehensive about doing two-heroine subjects, but I need to go beyond that and look at what I am doing in the film. The role has to be important and meaty enough for me. I would never be ok with playing second fiddle—that’s something I’ll never do.”
In her career, Trisha has done a variety of roles—from big commercial hits like Ghilli, Samy, Varsham Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana and Mankatha to heroine-oriented films like Abhiyum Naanum. Though she is happy to work in niche films like Abhiyum Naanum, she believes that as an actress in the Indian film industry it’s important to sign on big, commercial projects. “Thala55 is an Ajith film, but I love being part of a big film like this. It’s nice to go to the FDFS and watch a film with a big hero and see the audience’s reaction,” stresses Trisha.
The last few big releases in Tamil have seen the heroine being just a prop with a few scenes and songs thrown in. While many may diss an actress for taking on such roles, Trisha says these roles are imperative to an actress’s career here. “I also did those kinds of films five years ago. To get a position in the industry, I think it’s important to give a hit with a big hero, to be part of films which have a great opening and eventually go on to be a commercial hit. As an actress, you need these kind of films to stabilise yourself in the industry,” she adds.
As for the heroine jinx factor, Trisha says she was also considered a jinx early on in her career. “In an industry which is unstable and where it’s always about your last film, it’s also easy to break the jinx. The Tamil film industry is very sentimental, but that’s only fair because there’s a lot of money invested. If you don’t have the luck factor, things could go against you,” she says.
Luck has indeed favoured her as most of her films have done well and she has worked with all the top south actors. But Trisha says lulls in career are bound to happen when you’ve been in the industry for a decade. “It’s better to lie low and wait for a good film than do a film that may work against you. When I went through the worst lull of my career, Vinnaithandi Varuvaaya happened. There’ve been lows, but then the highs have also been very high. I’d tell anyone around that quality trumps quantity at any given point. But then everyone has a different career graph,” says the actress.
As for her personal life which has been in the news recently, all Trisha says is, “When I decide to get engaged or married, I will definitely let the world know.”