Eva Pavithran looks confident with loads of chutzpah and bubbling with life. An hour-long chat with the animated Eva makes you realise that she is fire and ice, sugar and spice. A self-made woman, who was working with a leading magazine, also displays her child side by showing off her collection of toy minions, dragons and Kung Fu pandas with glee.
Returning to the Malayalam marquee after 10 years through Rockstar, Eva has taken on a bold role that is sure to address the elephant in the living room.
The script is by her friend and colleague Rajashree, who narrated the story to Eva intending to make it a short story, but Eva saw the possibility of it as a cinema to reach a wider audience.
Talking of coming on board, she reveals, “I was telling Rajashree that I was feeling creatively struck and wanted to go back to dancing or acting.”
Then she suggested my name to VKP. Till then, he was not thinking of casting me; it just happened. I have been involved with the movie from day one, making it all the more special because Rajashree’s movie is my dream-come- true.”
The film discusses a very pertinent social issue and it is a journey of two characters. Eva plays Athira Menon, a bold beauty consultant who has her own views of life and the world. She is a pro-feminist and though impulsive and stubborn, listens to what others say.
Eva continues, “She makes a lot of choices in life that I would not personally make for sure because it is too bold. I am bold myself living alone in Mumbai but even the decision my character makes is not something I can take lightly or would do even if I am independent. Our similarity ends with the independence and the broad way of thinking.”
She mentions drawing on her life experiences to add to her character’s emotional outbursts. “I was 20 when I debuted in Malayalam and was very naïve compared to the present me, who has seen the world, experienced heartache and the loss of my father, so I had a lot of pain to draw for my emotional scenes from.”
About VKP, she adds, “He always used to tell us that a good actor improves with each take and he was very open to ideas. No one can match his energy even at 2 am.”
The daughter of late filmmaker Pavithran and dancer Kalamandalam Kshemavathy, Eva talks about her upbringing. “I was born in Thrissur. As my mom and dad are both artistes, my sister’s and my upbringing was not a typical Keralite one! My parents were very open-minded and I could tell them everything. I would walk in after school to script and dance rehearsals and there was always art around. I was brought up with very strong female role models and my mom and dad never came in the way of each other’s careers. When I wanted to work with a leading magazine in Mumbai, my parents supported me. My 10 years in Mumbai was a journey as an observer and a learner.”
The move to Mumbai saw Eva blossoming into a confident career woman. “In Kerala, I am Pavithran and Kshemavathy’s daughter; I led a protected life. Mumbai was where I started walking in the streets for the first time, using the public transport but there were moments I felt I did not fit in. Then I rallied, became street-smart and learnt the hard way. I was very emotionally dependent as a person, but now reading a book, watching the Mumbai rains, dancing and working out is my life.”
Her quest? “My ultimate dream is what Priyanka Chopra is doing right now — to be on American Television.” Eva has quit her job and is freelancing now so she can concentrate on films.
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