Roshan N.G. was doing the make-up for Asha Sharath when she saw two policemen walking in. She gasped and asked, “Why are the police here?,” Roshan chuckled and told her to look at her own costume. “You are wearing an IG’s uniform and you are afraid of policemen!” Asha smiled. Ever since Jeethu Joseph offered her the role of a police officer in 'Drishyam' she has been panicking. She has a phobia of the police, so much that she hadn’t dared drive a car in Dubai where she spent the last 12 years of her life, for fear of the Dubai police!
“After I read the script, I asked him if he was sure I could do it. He said he had confidence in me. And then I discussed it with Lalettan and he said I could do it.” With that assurance Asha Sharath became the tough Geetha Prabhakar in 'Drishyam'.
“There is a scene where I tell Lalettan Enthada Nee Vicharichathu? I couldn’t get myself to say that to him. And he said, ‘Asha, it is an IG telling Georgekutty, not Asha Sharath to Mohanlal’. Finally, I made it Enthado,” she says.Film offers had started coming her way during the short vacations she would take every month in Kerala, from Dubai and shoot for the TV series KunguÂmaÂpoo. “I chose it because I felt the character Professor Jayanthi was very catchy. And Sandra (film producer) and her family happened to be fans of Professor Jayanthi. It is she who first called me to act in a film called Friday.” Friday was followed by Karmayodha opposite Mohanlal and Buddy, a heroine-oriented film. Next came 'Zachariyayude Garbhinikal'.
Acting has never been her first profession. She loves dancing and began dancing at the age of three. “My mother Kalamandalam Sumathi was my first guru.” After years of performing Bharathanatyam, Mohiniyattom and Kuchipudi, Asha started a cultural school called ‘Kairali Kalakendram’ in Dubai. She has danced with her mother and two daughters — Uthara and Keerthana. “On the last day, we danced at the Padmanabha Swamy Temple, facing the deity, my daughters and I. It was such a great experience.” Kungumapoo is now complete and Asha has her hands full with offers, stories to hear, before she chooses her next film.
