You can call her Shamna or Poorna. The latter is just the screen name that the gorgeous actor adopted when she started doing films in Kollywood. But what’s in a name? It’s her acting skills and dedication to her roles that set her apart. Shaving her head for the role in Kodi Veeran was just a sample of her commitment. Shamna, who has been on a four-year hiatus from the Malayalam industry that made her an actor, gets vocal about her upcoming releases in Malayalam that include Mammootty-starrer Oru Kuttanadan Blog, Aanakallan, Toll Gate and Madhuraraja
“I didn’t stay away from Mollywood deliberately. It was just that I was not getting my kind of roles. As I always say, I don’t want to limit myself to being an ingredient in any dish. I want to be the sole flavouring agent, without which making the dish is impossible. If I am part of a movie, the character I handle should make sense to me at first and should also be convincing to the audiences, in terms of casting. A person watching my movies should not feel I was the wrong choice for the character,” she says adding, “Malayali audiences are well aware of Shamna as a dancer and that may be a reason why I was constantly being approached by filmmakers to do song sequences alone.” The actor, who is not against doing song sequences, says she didn’t accept those offers as none of them seemed to match her requirement. Sharing her happiness on doing the character of a police officer for the first time, she says, “Well, they say there is a right time for everything! I think my right time was a bit late. But I am glad I am finally receiving good roles from the Malayalam industry also.”
My character in Oru Kuttanadan Blog is my maiden attempt as a police officer. And I think I completely owe my short hair for bagging this role. I also got to know that it was Mammookka who suggested I would be suitable for portraying the character.” Shamna grabbed the spotlight when she shaved her head for the role in the movie Kodi Veeran. “I had once decided to quit acting when Chattakari didn’t do well at the box office. I told my mom I will now completely concentrate on my dance. It was then I started receiving offers from other languages and those movies were hits. This boosted my morale and I decided to continue. The characters I played in Shavarakathi and KodiVeeran are very close to my heart as they were a reality check for the actor in me and tested how much I could push myself,” she says and adds with a slight laughter that the actor was planning to get married when offers from Mollywood started pouring in.
Shamna with Mammooty on the sets of Oru Kuttanadan Blog.
“This means I am destined to do movies. How can I choose not to act?”she asks.
Shamna is all praise for Mammootty and says she was very sceptical about her first short in OKB as the environment of a movie set was very different for her for the past few years and the hesitance to fall in place was visible on her face. Commenting on her experience of working with Mammootty and Biju Menon, she says, “I was familiar with most of the Malayalam actors only through stage shows and was not able to build a relationship with them as I was not doing movies. Acting with Mammookka and Biju Menon is one of the greatest opportunities I have received. Both of them are hugely talented and very versatile yet grounded. I guess these are the qualities that make them superstars.”
Elaborating on her character, Shamna says she plays a playful police officer who compliments Mammootty’s character in the movie. “An actor’s performance is completely based on the support he/she gets from the co-stars. In the movie, though I am not a tough police officer, the character is a powerful one and I think I could do justice to my character because Mammookka was very supportive. Aanakallan is a complete comedy flick and Biju Menon will definitely grab the limelight. The supporting cast, including me, adds to the content of the movie. I am trying to be a part of stories from different genres as I think it is very important for an actor to try his/her hand at everything. I am also excited about Madhuraraja and Toll Gate.”
Shamna, however, has no plans to stop dancing and wants to take it further. “Dance is what comes to me seamlessly and I can’t stop dancing,” she says. Ask if she supports actors speaking against item numbers, she says, “Item numbers are just fun numbers. I am against the vulgarity in the lyrics. I try and avoid performing to songs that have vulgar lyrics.” Talking about her wedding plans the actor says, “The wedding is still on the cards but I have no plans to quit acting. Belonging to a Muslim community that imposes many restrictions on women, people demand a lot from me when I get proposals. However, I not going to change who I am just to get married,” she concludes.
