‘Amar Singh is my mentor’ - Jaya Prada

Jaya Prada is the quintessential survivor who always seems to land on her feet. A movie diva of yesteryears, who also had a successful stint in politics, is now returning to Tamil cinema in the all-new avatar of a producer. Jaya launches her nephew Siddhu in a Tamil film Uyire Uyire. Jaya, who was in Chennai for the film’s promo launch, says, “My life is a dream come true. As an artiste, I had a career of 30 years in different languages. Full credit to my guru Balachandar sir for his life lessons. Although I have only acted in a few Tamil films, the audiences love me immensely. The industry has been like a nurturing mother to me; I love it
unconditionally.”

Asked why she chose to launch her nephew Siddhu, who she lovingly refers to as a son, in Tamil, she explained, “I feel like it is my own world. People ask, ‘When there are big heroes, so how will he sustain himself?’ I feel it is because this industry has a big heart. Unlike in Telugu and Hindi, where all the heroes have launched their own sons, in Tamil, if you take Rajini sir or Kamal sir as examples, they have no sons so there is a gap. Hence, a deliberate attempt to launch my son.”

Siddhu’s launch vehicle will be a remake of the Telugu Nithiin starrer Ishq. “Nithiin got a big break after a gap with this film, which had superhit music, great characters and moods. It is a simple film, youth-centric and shows a vibrant kind of love. The industry loves this kind of a subject,” she said. Jaya has succeeded in signing on Hansika for Siddhu’s maiden venture. “Hansika has a bubbly role. After Romeo Juliet, this character will bring her into the limelight because she is in every frame. This was my first experience with the younger generation, so I was impressed with her confident body language –– she is a director’s delight,” she said.

When asked to reminisce about her career in Tamil, she said, “Dasavatharam was my last Tamil film, but I will return soon. I am on the lookout for a good script.”
Has politics put films on the backburner? “When Kamal Haasan came to Jayapradam –– my commercial show –– he scolded me, saying, ‘Jaya, why have you chosen politics? I don’t like you going into politics!’ He meant that I was wasting my screen talent, and I was honoured. As an actress, I did not crave glamourous roles, but performance-oriented ones,” she revealed.

When asked to name a favourite –– politics or films, she said, “See, politics is a bonus. My stardom helped me, but I’ll never say that I’m a politician. I don’t have a political brain. I can’t point a gun to a person or handle criminal elements. I stalled the Parliament on the issue of 33 per cent reservation for women, raised my voice about the Nirbhaya rape case and about the beedi workers — that came from my heart.”

Jaya said that politics is no longer viable for film stars. There is also an important difference between the politics of the North and South. “In the South, being in politics is like heaven, whereas in the North, it’s a totally different ballgame. In the South, people rarely kill in the name of politics, but up North, it’s a battlefield, day-in and day-out. You need a big and brave heart to fight.”

About accepting mother roles, she said, “In a male dominated industry, I can get a mother’s role anytime. But like Amitabhji (Bachchan), I want to choose meaningful films.” Reacting to a query on why Amar Singh presents the movie Uyire Uyire, Jaya said, “Although a politician, his knowledge about the film industry is encyclopaedic. He has been my mentor, right from my early days in politics. When I needed to speak proper Hindi on entering Mulayam Singh’s party, Amar Singhji wrote my first speech. My first film in Tamil as a producer is my tribute to him, and I felt he is the right person to present this.”