Rini Raj: Smart girl on the go

Actress Rini Raj, better known as Myna of Mangalyapattu among television buffs was busy on the sets when we contacted her for an interview. The shooting was taking place at a textile showroom in Kottarakara, where Rini’s character works as a saleswoman.

During the break, Rini opened up about her journey so far. “Mangalyapattu is my first serial. I entered the realm of acting through a music album Orma. There were four songs in it and I have acted in two,” says Rini, who was a Class IX student then.

Rini leapt to heroine status with the movie Smart Boys. “I was one among the three heroines.  My next project was Ottakolam, which  again had an offbeat character. It was only in Smart Boys that I sported the new-gen get-up,” smiles the Class XII student.

In Mangalyapattu, Rini plays a powerful character Myna, who sacrifices her life to help her family and her sister become a doctor. “Myna hails from a weaver’s family. She does some small jobs along with her saleswoman job to make both ends meet. Her father gets a big order to weave a mangalyapattu. However, he fails to deliver it as someone burns the sari, which further lands the family into a trouble,” says Rini. “Serial is entirely different from cinema. And, I am enjoying the new platform. Every day is a learning experience for me. I understand my character deeply after each shot. The director had told me that my character would become more intense in the coming episodes.”

Does she watch her serial on television? “No. I usually don’t get time to watch my serial. I don’t even get time to attend my class properly,” says the actor who loves to dance and listen to music during leisure times.

In 2014, she did a movie called Maramkothi in which she was the second lead heroine. “It was an offbeat movie, set in the old time. The portrayal of my character Anima was in tune with the era. It was a good character,” she adds.