The essence of a character matters: Malayalam actor Srindaa on her journey and being part of ‘Kuruthi’

Actor Srindaa confesses that she was struck by disbelief when she read the script of the Malayalam film Kuruthi. “‘Is it me they thought about for this role?’ I get this thought every time with every film. I have to first convince myself.” Kuruthi, directed by Manu Warrier and starring Prithviraj Sukumaran, Murali Gopy, and Roshan Mathews, drops on Amazon Prime on August 11.

When she found out that Prithviraj had, in fact, suggested her name for the role, she says, “Once you see the movie, you will know how important the role is. A character like this, in a thriller, is a first for me. When you get a call from an actor everyone likes, from a production house like that [Prithviraj Productions]…you go wow!” Technically, Kuruthi is her second OTT release, after Sara’s. The film was scheduled for a theatrical release in May 2021, but could not proceed due to the second wave of COVID-19.

The actor made her debut in 2010, but she was noticed in Aashiq Abu’s 22 Female Kottayam (2012). Her breakout role was in Abrid Shine’s 1983 (2014) opposite Nivin Pauly. She has always batted for author-backed roles, irrespective of its length. Her other films include Annayum Rasoolum, Thattathin Marayathu, North 24 Kaatham, Trance, Tamaar Padaar, Amar Akbar Anthony, Parava and Rani Padmini.

She describes her journey tillKuruthi as ‘evolution’. “None of us are is what we were a decade ago; we grow, we change. Change is good, in life and professionally. I have always enjoyed cinema. Be it five or ten minutes of screen time or a full-length role like in Kuruthi, it is important for me to know how significant my role is in the scheme of things. The essence of the character matters,” adds Srindaa, who is the only female character in Kuruthi.

She says that her approach to cinema has never been wanting a full-length role but being part of a film with a relevant subject. Like Lissie in recent Malayalam release, Sara’s; Lissie is the opposite of what the lead protagonist, Sara, is. Unlike Sara, who has agency over her body and the decision to have children, Lissie has no say.

During the duration of filming Kuruthi, actors and technicians stayed in the same place, but in a bio-bubble of sorts. “We were done [filming] in January. When I look back, I miss that time. Ours was a small team; the 20-25 of us were constantly together due to COVID protocol. Every moment was amazing. In this context, the COVID protocol was a boon; there was a continuous ‘vibe’ between all of us.”

Films not releasing in theatres is a dampener but Srindaa is looking ahead., “The advantage of an OTT platform is the scale of the release; so many people across the world get a chance to watch it. We [Malayalam cinema] have always had good films but now, thanks to OTT platforms,films from Kerala are being celebrated everywhere.”