It’s a dream debut for Mumbai based Divinaa Thackur — the trilingual film, ‘Veeram’, and working under legendary Malayalam director and six-time National Award-winner Jayaraj.
Thackur is basking in the compliments coming her way for the portrayal of Kuttimani in the film. Veeram released in Kerala last month.
In an exclusive conversation with tabloid!, the trained Kathak artist speaks about getting into the skin of Kuttimani and more. Excerpts follow.
On role play:
Kuttimani is Lady Macbeth, a complex character with several layers to her. Power hungry and manipulative, she is more masculine and a go-getter with a vengeance.
Kuttimani came with several challenges. The film was made in three languages. While I am well versed in English and Hindi, Malayalam is new to me.
After the first reading of the script, I asked Jayaraj sir, “How do I prepare?”
He had just two things to say: “Do your lines really well and meditate.”
He asked me to put on weight as Kuttimani is a voluptuous woman, so from 52kg I went to become 61kg.
I read Shakespeare’s Macbeth many times to understand the depth of her character. And I watched different adaptations of Macbeth, such as Akiro Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood and Roman Polanski’s Macbeth.
Since Kuttimani belonged to the 16th century, I researched on her costumes, jewellery, and her body language. The Malayalam film Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha helped me in understanding this.
On working with Jayaraj:
It was a great learning experience, more like working under five different directors. We shot over 45 days in one go, which is the longest for a Jayaraj film, I was told. Yet, not once did I see him stressed out or frowning. He is a calm person who takes things easy and deals with them smoothly.
What helped me was the fact that I had learnt Kalaripayattu [martial art from Kerala] three years ago. Jayaraj sir was surprised to hear about it. We bonded over kalarippayattu and our love for cinema.
On Kunal Kapoor, her co-star:
Ever since I watched his debut film, Meenakshi — A tale of Three Cities, I have been his fan. And then Rang De Basanti. I had a poster of him on my wall at home. Yes, I was excited about working with Kunal, but also wondered if he would carry airs. Kunal proved otherwise and was a great co-star who helped me with my performance.
More than that, I understood the good human being that he is. Not many know that Kunal has been supporting the education of a little boy who served chai on the sets of one of his films.
On what’s next:
I have worked on a web series titled R and J, a Balaji Productions and likely to release next month. I play a college girl, who is haughty and most sought after. I am listening to scripts in Hindi and Malayalam.
The details
Veeram, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, tells the story of ambition, revenge, betrayal, lust and love propped against the backdrop of kalarippayattu, Kerala’s martial art form.
Kapoor plays the lead role of Chandu, opposite Divinaa Thackur. Other key players are Himarsha Venkatsamy, Shivajith Nambiar, Fakira Aka Ahran Choudhury and Sreeraj.
Scripted and directed by Jayaraj, Veeram releases in UAE on March 16.
