‘Yes, I am being denied roles’

The actress confirmed that she has lost many projects as an aftermath of her decision. “Yes, I have lost many films that way. But to be frank, those projects had bombed at box office. So, I think in a way, this so-called ‘aftermath’ became a blessing in my career as it helped me to keep away from many bad projects,” she says. According to Bhavana, though she had to face this sort of ‘unwritten ban’, she was not in a sabbatical. “I did not feel I had a gap in Malayalam. For the past five years, I am doing two movies per year, as I am least interested in increasing the number of films. Even this year, I acted in two films. I have become selective and now I am doing the films of the makers who agree with my demands,” she says.

The actress says remuneration is a big issue in Malayalam industry. “Just like the script and the time, I give importance to remuneration also. Even if the script is good, I can’t say yes to a project until they agree to give the remuneration that I ask for. That does not mean I am asking for a huge amount that is not affordable for our industry or my remuneration as in Kannada or other industries. In the meantime, many of the makers are ready to give a big amount as remuneration for a hero. An actor, who is acting as hero in his fourth or fifth film may get more than Rs 70 lakh,” says the actress.

When quizzed about whether it is a common problem faced by all the heroines in the industry, she says “I do not discuss this kind of matter with my colleagues. So I cannot comment on this”. The actress, who was last seen in a guest role in Asif Ali-starrer Kohinoor, is now acting again with the actor in Adventures of Omanakuttan. “In fact, Adventures of Omanakuttan was supposed to be released this year itself. But the shooting got postponed after I had to go for a foreign trip, as part of a stage show. When I came back, Asif got busy with his other commitments. Now we have restarted the shoot and the schedule is on in Mysore,” says Bhavana, who has wrapped up the shoot of Hello Namasthe, in which she was essaying the lead role along with Mia.

Hello Namasthe is her first Malayalam project after the demise of her father Balachandran. “He was my strength. When I came to the industry, I was hardly 14-15 years. From then onwards, he was with me as a strong pillar. For around five-six years, he stood behind me to help me in my career till I was free to take care of things. But in my personal life, his demise created a big void. I really miss him a lot,” Bhavana says.