Priya Mani can be termed a ‘power house performer’. Winning awards and honours are just another day’s work for this dark horse of tinsel town. She is popular in all the south Indian languages while her hot item number with Shahrukh Khan, the Badshah of Bollywood, in Chennai Express, took her to different heights. The bubbly girl opens up for the first time about her relationship in her decade-long career to DC and talks about much more in an exclusive.
First things first, we say to the actress. We hear that you are in a relationship for the past two years. (Smiles) “A lot has been spoken about my relationship in newspapers and social networking sites. I would like to keep it private at this point. It’s too early to reveal anything now, when the time comes, I will make an official statement myself.”
Though she was not forthcoming about revealing the identity of her ‘man’ or whether marriage was on the cards, the dusky beauty is one who never shies away from speaking from conviction. “I don’t know about the others, but I always believe in telling the truth, because if not today, one day everyone will get to know. There’s no point in hiding it,” she says.
Unlike in Bollywood, where married actresses still get to act in lead roles, in the south heroines who marry no longer figure as the favourites of the major heroes. What’s Priya’s take on it? “They think once the girls decide to get married no one is ready to give them roles opposite the leading heroes. I wonder why! This is a question to which I am seeking answers myself. Since Bollywood actresses, like Kajol and Kareena Kapoor, can act in films as leading heroines even after their marriage, why not girls in the south. There’s nothing wrong in it.”
Priya has always been associated with performance-oriented roles and people expect something special from her in each film. Quiz her on how she goes about choosing her scripts, the leggy lass says, “I’m glad that people are offering me movies with performance-based roles. Most of them do have a glamour quotient too. But for me, if the script is convincing enough then I will do it irrespective of the movie becoming a hit or not. Because we give it our 100 per cent, the end result isn’t in our hands.”
Having had a dream debut with the maverick director Bharathiraja and worked with some of the best talents in Tamil and even bagged a National Award for a Tamil movie, Paruthiveeran, we don’t get to see Priya in Tamil often. Does she feel that her talents are not recognised in K’town? We hear that you are miffed with Tamil films, we say to her. (Laughs) “I think this is a question to be asked of directors and producers as my career started with Tamil,” she replies. “I’m open to doing films in Tamil even now. I’m waiting for some exciting scripts! Let’s see.”
While many actresses get apprehensive doing item songs while at the peak of their careers, the Malai Kottai girl boldly scorched the screen in B’town superstar SRK’s Chennai Express. So was she open to doing item numbers in the future? “Who would decline an opportunity to work with Shahrukh Khan and that too in a big movie like Chennai Express directed by Rohit Shetty?” she shoots back. “I did have my doubts about the sequence of the song, but once I met Shetty all my doubts were cleared and the moment I heard the song, I didn’t think twice. I agreed and thanks to SRK and Rohit, the song has become such a huge hit that it’s being played almost everywhere and I also got appreciation from people from all over on the social networking sites. They were mostly SRK’s fans and followers. About doing item numbers in the future, I do not know as I haven’t given it a thought.”
On shifting interests to female-centric films in Tollywood, like Chandi, the actress, who was doing glamour roles without fearing the repercussions, says, “I try not to keep doing female-centric films alone. Not only in Tollywood, even in Kannada and Malayalam, I am a little careful as I know that they would typecast me. I try to balance both.”
She candidly admits that directing a movie is not an easy task although she is interested in wielding the megaphone one day. “It may not happen in the near future. It’s not that easy to direct films. Kudos to all the directors who are doing a great job,” she quips.
Like her peers and her cousin Vidya Balan, why didn’t she try Bollywood films? “Well just because it is Bollywood doesn’t mean I have to sign each and every project that comes my way. I have to take up the right one. If something fascinating comes up, I may consider it.”
On her dream role, she says, “I’m really dying to do a negatively shaded role, like Ramya Krishnan did in Padayappa. I’d love to work even in a full-length comedy role, something like the Golmaal series in Hindi.
We hear that your grandma was a well known singer, we say. How about you? “I did go for some classes, but didn’t actually take it up professionally, but I can hold a tune.”
The svelte actress says that though she loves dark chocolates and ice cream, she has never indulged in anything. She says that she takes inspiration from people around her. “I think it’s just the vibe of the people around me. I have come across a lot of people with some of their personal stories which makes you think ‘what if I had been there around that time to witness it’.”
When she is not shooting, she is like any other normal girl who gets a day’s break. “I sit at home, watch TV practically the whole day or play with my dog or meet up with friends over a cup of coffee or go watch movies at the theatre, just like any normal girl.” And her close buddies include her cousin, Sandhya, and Ragini who is her best friend from college. “I want to be identified as a good person and a good actress who has done a decent body of work,” Priya asserts.
She attributes her success to her family. “Without their support I don’t think I would be where I am.”On future offerings, she says, “I am doing a Kannada film called Ambareesha with Darshan. I have completed yet another Sandalwood movie with R.P Patnaik, music director in Telugu. He directed his first Kannada movie, which is a political thriller, in which I play a cameo role of a CBI officer. I have a Malayalam movie from May.”
As for her support of social causes, she says, “I do my best for CRY, the NGO and Save The Children. My father supports kids’ education. I am trying my best to be the voice for the voiceless (animals). I’m an avid animal lover, especially dogs and cats and the cat family. Hope I get to work with CUPA or PETA or Blue Cross,” she says.
