Her Sheela Chacko in Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela shows poise and grace in the face of an adversity.
Whenever someone mentions Shanti Krishna, one film immediately comes to my mind — Pakshe, featuring Mohan Lal and Shobana along with her.
In that family drama, Balachandran and Nandinikutty, lovers for long are compelled by circumstances to part ways. Balachandran, an IAS officer marries Rajeshwari, the daughter of a wealthy businessman. But he is not happy caught in a relationship dominated by an arrogant Rajeshwari. At a later point, he meets Nandinikutty and thinks of reuniting with her and separating from Rajeshwari, but destiny’s cruel hands takes him back to his wife and children.
Krishna was Rajeshwari to the hilt and when she appears towards the end of the story as a party pooper, viewers were clearly not happy to see her. To play a role with negative traits and to hold herself in the company of Mohanlal and Shobana (who were the favourite on-screen pair in the 80s) was commendable.
After playing a good range of roles that included the free-spirited Anne of Chillu and the arrogant spinster of Chakoram, Krishna called it quits after completing Sukritham in 1994. Marriage and family kept her away from the screen. Now two decades later, she returned with Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela (NNO).
The twice Kerala state award winner (for Savidham and Chakoram) spoke to Gulf News tabloid! on her new journey.
How did Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela happen?
“I was living in the USA and had no intentions of doing films. One day I was surprised to receive a message on Facebook from the team stating that they wished to meet me on my visit to India. Last year, I returned to India for good. I was occupied with my personal issues and I completely forgot to call them. To my surprise, I received another message on WhatsApp. Subsequently the director met me in Bengaluru where I have settled down. I was impressed with Sheela’s characterisation. My children encouraged me to take it up. NNO was meant to happen.”
What was the experience like working with the younger generation?
“Initially, I wondered about director Althaf when we met for the narration. During filming, I was struck by his brilliance and his enthusiasm. He never compromised and his confidence in extracting natural performances from the cast is commendable. The young generation are focused and hard working. With technology to their aid, they had everything well planned.
Your on-screen chemistry with Lal Sr is lovely, how was it working with him?
I had never worked with him earlier, though knew him in the past. He turned director after I left the industry. Prior to filming, we had a workshop where we all discussed our roles and there was an exchange of ideas. Lal, being the veteran that he is, came up with improvisations that were often impromptu. He could deliver the lines with a straight face while I found it hard to hold back my laughter during our scenes together.
How has Sheela Chacko been received?
Everyone is loving her confident and strong personality. After a show in a Bengaluru theatre, two women came up to me. One was a cancer survivor and the other had seen her mother go through this.
What are you working on now?
I am part of this tri-lingual Krishnam, made in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. Dinesh Baboo is the director and this story is based on a real life incident of a teenager. Akshay Krishnan who experienced this is playing the lead himself.
Another film is Mazhaiyethu with director Suveeran [of National Award winning-film Byari fame] where I play a school principal. The story talks about a social issue.
