Jill of all trades

In the morning, Karthika Muraleedharan is getting ready to go for a shoot. Her transition from an art student to an actor happened so quickly and now, her maiden movie Comrade in America (CIA) in which she is paired up with Dulquer Salmaan is running to packed houses.

Looks like the daughter of cinematographer C.K.Muraleedharan is enjoying her new phase.   

“When I was studying, a Malayalam media team came to interview my father and asked me if I am interested to act. I casually said that I would if it was with Dulquer. Nothing happened for three years. CIA came much later, during my first year in Srishti,” says Karthika, an art student at Srishti School of Art Design and Technology, Bengaluru.

The movie was a new experience for her. “I was brand new in this. Every day, I was doing something different and working with Dulquer was really inspiring. He helped me understand certain dialogues and scenes and was very patient during retakes. It is nice to have around such a person who pushes you to bring out your best.”

For Karthika, life has always been experimental. She reached cinema after a long journey. “I have tried a lot of things. I did graduation in English Literature and Political Science. I was dancing for three years. In between, I did theatre. But, I always knew that I have to write something on my own,” says Karthika, who is doing her bachelor degree in Creative Arts and focuses on contemporary art practices.

She had taken part in the Students’ Biennale of the Kochi Muziris Biennale which was a great learning experience for her. Her college was associated with the biennale. She even drew the image of a whale at the place where she resided during the art fest.

“We told them that we are artists and they gave us space. And we did that painting,” she smiles, adding that she is not a painter. “I am a performing artiste. Stage and social experiments are my forte. I can paint but I won’t call myself a painter.”

Explaining about one of her works done in Bengaluru, she says, “There are many man-made lakes, which are dying, in Bengaluru. You have to do something about it. So, I made the head of a girl, who is depicted as the devi of the lake, and put her in water. It was made of maida and water base and would start melting in the water. The whole idea was to portray how people who made the lakes are killing them. What you see is a suicide attempt by the devi of the lake. She kills herself and you watch it. She says that you are the one who made me and you do nothing but watch me die. It was like the lake putting up a performance for you. I recorded and documented it. The whole point was that the crowd looked at it till she went deep into the water. This is not something you can look at and leave,” explains Karthika.

Another project of hers was ‘private and public spaces’ where she set up kitchen and bedroom in the middle of a street. The idea was to find out how people would behave in such a situation.

Quizzed Karthika about how and when she took up art, she has a long story to narrate. “My friend and I used to throw drawing parties at home during summer vacations. During one such occasion, I drew a picture and showed it to my dad. His reply was ‘okei, whatever’. When I asked more, he said, ‘Nothing, anyone can do this. Karthika, you can’t draw’. I was very offended. The next week, he left or a month-long shoot. The day he left, I bought a book and pastels and started drawing so that by the time he returns, I’ll have enough works to prove him that I could do it. Maybe I couldn’t draw human figures accurately, but I wanted to show him that I have the skill. So, I would draw for hours at night and had 78 works ready when he was home. He sat on the bench. I kept the book in front of him and walked away. He went through the works. Later, after dinner, he came and told me, ‘Karthika, I think you can draw,’” she smiles.

He suggested me to try fashion designing. The NID exam was coming closer and Karthika got through without much preparation. Her father was of opinion that she would get through the exam if she had talent. However, around the same time, her dance scholarship came and Karthika opted dance. Next year, she joined Srishti leaving dance. “By that time, my dance company wanted me to tour with them. But, I didn’t want to make money out of dance. For me, dance is hobby, stress-buster.” But she could continue her dance and theatre in Srishti as well. In dance, street jazz is her forte and now Karthika wants to continue both movies and art.

How did her dad react to CIA? Karthika responds, “He liked the movie. He is my best critic. He never lies to me. He told me about the places where I need to work on.”