Manasa coming of age

Kids grow up fast. There’s no need to look elsewhere when Malayalam cinema bears testimony to the statement. The industry, over many years, has seen many child artistes fast graduating to mature roles. Joining the club is Manasa Radhakrishnan. Little Malu from the 2010-flick Kadaksham is playing female lead in two movies — Arun Kumar Aravind’s Kattu and Babu Thiruvalla’s segment Maunam in the portmanteau movie Crossroad. “As a kid, it’s easy to get loved by everyone. A smile may win copious amounts of appreciation. The responsibility is big when we grow up,” reasons 18-year-old Manasa.

Audience response to her latest role as Jaseela in Tiyaan is anyway boosting Manasa’s confidence. She shares her excitement of people recognising her as she came out of the cinema hall after watching the movie. “On day one, I was at PVR Lulu for the 12 p.m. show. It was the first time people noticed me from the film and asked me if it was I who enacted that role. It was so special,” says Manasa. In the movie, she appears as the sister of Shine Tom Chacko.   How did she get into the bigger business? When Crossroad was in the discussion phase, Kadaksham director Sashi Paravoor had suggested her name to Babu Thiruvalla, which in turn paved the path for her to portray Sally, a young ambitious girl who becomes a nun.

“I shared screen space with Seema G. Nair and Anu Mohan. Though we had to shoot for just three or four days, we all became really close. Working with Babu uncle’s team was an amazing experience. True professionals,” she gushes. Then came Tiyaan, which took her straightaway to Kattu. Murali Gopy, who chanced upon her on the sets, referred her for the role of Ummukulsu in the Arun Kumar movie. A scared Manasa did not take long to get accustomed to the cast and crew.

“Ummukulsu is a chirpy girl from an unassuming seaside place. I had some initial fears, because it was a bigger team. The director had the immense patience to explain each and every scene to me. I had to grow my unibrow to portray Ummukulsu,” says Manasa. She keeps her fingers crossed as both her movies are getting ready for the audience. But she is more excited about the crucial turning point in her studies. “I have attempted both medical and engineering entrance examinations and I look forward to studying engineering,” says a hopeful Manasa. It’s not bad if Malayalam cinema gets a prospective engineer, right?