Performing many roles: Parvathy Nambiar

Parvathy Nambiar, the pretty lady of M’town is in fact a multi-talented person. She is a dancer, actor, badminton player and an amateur singer. But, Parvathy doesn’t like to be labeled ‘multi-talented’. If you address her like that, she will say, “I am not multi-talented. It is just that I love experimenting with different genres. With God’s grace, I have got the opportunities to do all these. And whenever I do something, I am fully dedicated to it — be it arts, studies or sports.” And this determination has led Parvathy to take some time off from films and to concentrate more on studies and dance.

Parvathy forayed into acting through the Lal Jose film Ezhu Sundara Rathrikal starring opposite Dileep. She had got offers after that movie. But, she didn’t commit to them as she couldn’t manage movies and studies together.

“But, I could handle studies and dance together. Hence, I did dance shows alongside with my literature studies. I don’t think people have forgotten me because I was very much here through dance shows and television shows,” says Parvathy who has learned Koodiyattam, one of the ancient and toughest traditional art forms of Kerala.

Parvathy started learning Koodiyattam, a few years back, to perform in Youth festivals, following suggestions from her friends. When she started, she was not aware of the significance of Koodiyattam. However, once she learned the basics, she got interested in this art form. “I felt like learning more and my master was very supportive. That was how I began learning this ancient art form,” says Parvathy who later performed Koodiyattam in temples.

According to her, studying Koodiyattam has brought many changes in her life. It increased her confidence level and improved her command over Malayalam. “The performance begins with chanting a few lines in Sanskrit. Also, one needs to be fluent in Malayalam to perform Koodiyattam well. I would say, I learnt Malayalam well and my pronunciation got better, once I started learning Koodiyattam,” she says. Parvathy considers being trained in Koodiyattam as a treasure for life. She still cherishes the moment when she appeared as Jatayu in Jatayu vadham.  

In her opinion, Koodiyattam is very different from other classical dances and is one of the most difficult ones to master. “Anybody can dance. But, not everyone can do Koodiyattam. In it, the expression of the eyes matters the most. To study this art, one should either have an inborn talent or interest in it,” opines Parvathy. She also performs contemporary classical dance shows. “I choose themes and choreograph shows according to the audience. However, usually, I try to bring novelty in the music, movements and costumes while performing on stage.”

Another milestone in her career was enacting ‘Makari’ in the drama Makra Dhwajan directed by Prasanth Narayanan. She did the sole female character in it. “That was a challenging role and I had to work a lot to bring perfection. The role required me to dance, sing, and act. It was a great experience working under Prasanth sir who did the famous drama Chayamukhi. I have not done any other theatre projects after that. I would love to team up with him one more time,” says Parvathy.

Though she is not active in films, she is popular on television. She has appeared as a guest on Comedy Super Nite, a comedy show broadcast on Flowers Channel. Interestingly, it was from television that Parvathy got entry into films. “I was a contestant in the reality show Mammootty The Best Actor. My brother and I were in the final four. It was Ranjith sir who was there for the show, who offered me my first role in films. He had cast me in a main role in one of his movies. But, due to some problems that didn’t happen. Then came Lal Jose sir’s film,” she says.

Will Parvathy be back in movies? “Yes. I have committed to one project. I cannot reveal more details about it. You all will soon see me in movies,” she signs off.