I can only do one thing at a time: Gauthami
Gauthami talks about staying away from films for 14 years, her fight with cancer and Kamal Haasan’s support
By : suresh kavirayani
Update: 2015-08-27 23:32 GMT
Gauthami was recently in town to support a cancer survivor who made a short film to document her battle against the disease. Apart from talking about the disease — she is a cancer survivor herself — the actress also spoke about Papanasam, the Tamil film she has made a comeback with after 14 years.
“I have acted in more than 120 films, but this was the first time I was really acclaimed… and there was not a single criticism about the film,” said Gauthami.
The actress is now looking for more opportunities and won’t be averse to Telugu films too. Did she miss staying away from the silver screen all these years? “No. I planned my life according to my priorities. I wanted to do things one by one and live my life. The brain can only do one thing at a time. I decided at one stage that I wanted to work and then I wanted a family life. My child is the most important thing in my life and I decided to spend time with my daughter. Many people say that they can do two or three things at once, I respect them, but I made my choice and according to that I live my life,” she said.
Talking about her own fight with breast cancer, Gauthami said, “I don’t hide my past illness or feel shy to talk about it. I want to face it. If you have fear in your mind you will weaken further. You have to be strong and face it with self-confidence.”
She added that her daughter knew about it though she was five years old at that time. “We told her in a way so that she could understand,” she said.
And her partner Kamal Haasan supported her throughout. “Yes, he supported me 100 per cent. If my parents were alive they would have been there with me. But my two aunts helped me a lot at that time. They never left me alone,” said Gauthami.
Talking more about Kamal Haasan, she added, “We always share everything with each other. Whenever he comes home, he leaves all his tensions outside and comes with a smile. He asks about the kids and what happened during the day. He never gets angry with anyone and is a cool person,” she said.
When asked about Kamal’s daughters Shruti and Akshara, Gauthami says that they are like her own daughters.
Does she get involved in Kamal’s films? “From Dasavatharam (2008) till his upcoming film Cheekati Rajyam I have been his costume designer, and I will continue to help in his films,” said Gauthami.
Gauthami, who is now 46, says that since she is health conscious, she always strives to stay fit. “Our health depends on our common sense. The biggest poison is the food we eat. It is common sense… we should eat only healthy food. I follow that and that’s my mantra,” she said