Leading the pack

She has worked with some of the veterans of South Indian film industry like Mani Ratnam, Sathyan Anthikkad, Vetrimaran and Gautham Vasudev Menon. The variety of roles that Aishwarya Rajesh has portrayed in a career spanning eight years and the Tamil Nadu State award for best actress are the answers to why this ‘strong’ actor is every director’s choice. Name some of the major releases of the year - Saamy 2, Chekka Chivantha Vaanam or Vada Chennai - Aishwarya has done prominent roles in all of them. As she puts it, “I have always given priority to the gravity of the roles I do. I prefer doing strong roles irrespective of duration, and it is almost impossible for me to take up a role that has nothing much to contribute to the script. I am thankful that many ace directors as well as newcomers are approaching me for roles that are different from one another.”

Ask if it is intentional of her to choose off-beat strong characters, and Aishwarya says it’s partially intentional and partially how things have shaped up for her in the industry. “Directors approach me for doing ‘strong’ women characters which, as an actor, increases a sense of responsibility to give my 100 per cent and even more for the faith they entrust on me. It is my privilege if the directors think that I am an apt choice for portraying intense women-centric characters,” she adds. Commenting on her recent release Vadachennai, Aishwarya says that the Danush-starrer is a travel through director Vetrimaran’s thoughts on the particular plot. “The method in which Vadachennai is narrated gives a feeling as if you are travelling with the characters to the different eras where the various situations happen. I think it is one of the unique methods a director has,” she says, adding that every director she has worked with has an entirely different approach towards movies and that it is one of the highlights that has helped her mould the actor in her.

Aishwarya is gearing up for her next release Kanaa, which could be a game-changer for the actor as it is the first movie ever made in India on a woman cricketer. Getting vocal about her role in Kanaa, Aishwarya says, “I haven’t done something like this before and I even don’t think that more of such characters will happen in future. Such characters are one of a kind and such movies do not happen often. It was a challenging task for me to get into the shoes of the character and I had to undergo intense training for the same. But I am happy I could do everything possible in order to pull it well.”

The actor who is of the opinion that more women-centric scripts should be written, adds that she feels that only 20 percent of the movies nowadays are female-centric and that it should rise to 50 percent. However, when asked about the #metoo controversies that have gripped Kollywood also, Aish warya says, “I have not faced any unfortunate situations till date and therefore I cannot comment on the same.”

Before concluding, she cleared the air regarding her role in the Jayalalithaa biopic. She says she will never be taking up the character of R Sasikala, if at all she is approached for the same.