Urvashi loves being herself

Controversies are not new to actress Urvashi, who has battled more than her fair share. The actress was recently criticised for her behaviour and her speech at an annual celebration of the legislative staff association, with many claiming her outburst to have been under the influence of alcohol.

Explaining the incident, which went viral on social media, Urvashi says, “I was unwell on that day and was forced to attend the function. I really don’t understand why it went viral. This is a reflection of the nature of the social media and thankfully, I am not on social media. I do not use WhatsApp and have not seen the videos so it does not affect me.”

Urvashi was absent from the film scene for about a year owing to her pregnancy and childbirth and it has been almost ten years since she worked with Kamal Haasan. Speaking about her new release Uttama Villain, she says, “Kamal sir suddenly called up and said that he was planning a different film and that our pairing wouldn't have comic elements unlike before.”

Urvashi performs the role of a superstar’s wife who is not bothered about her body, eats whatever she likes and has a list of ailments including back and knee pain, BP, high sugar and cholesterol. She added that the emotional hospital scene where Urvashi’s character does a critical self-analysis of her faults has reflections of her own self. 

Urvashi frankly admits that, “Though it was an emotional scene, I felt like bursting out laughing because it was like talking about the real me! It’s very rare that you get to act out such a realistic scene. I am a very lazy person who has never been body conscious. If I feel happy, I eat and then if someone comments that I have put on weight, I control for two days and then start eating again. Exercise is something alien to me, although I do keep thinking of starting it each morning and then procrastinating.” Food, she divulges, is her weakness and dieting is a word that comes to mind everyday but is forgotten in five minutes.

Urvashi has been playing mother roles since the early stages of her career. “I feel the most respectful stage of a woman is motherhood. I always wanted to be a mother to many children in real life. That desire is still there which is why I risked a late delivery and faced the related physical complications. But I am very happy. I have never been conscious of my appearance at any age.”

“I feel there is a dearth of writers to do justice to actresses who have crossed the age of forty and I used to select strong women-oriented roles in Malayalam but stereotyping put me off and so I decided to act in other language films for financial stability and the opportunity to do strong roles.” Though she admits that she cannot afford to be choosy since acting is the only job she knows, she has been getting good offers.

Urvashi is happy with the sincerity of the younger actors who have talent but she laments that they pay too much attention to their clothes and make up which may not even gel with the scenes being shot.  Urvashi’s son Ishaan Prajapathi is nine months old and takes top priority. She says, “I take my son wherever I travel just as I did with my daughter earlier on. My family is very supportive, so it’s easy.” A free day would see her cooking or jotting down her thoughts.