Born with a funny bone

Whether it be as the judge with the funny bone in Punyalan Agarbathis or as the father in Vellimoonga or the several other memorable characters, Sunil Sukhada’s performances, although cameo-like, have been some of the most well-liked in recent years. He has successfully made a lasting impression whatever be the role he is enacting. In fact, he has been a fixture in most of the recent releases.

In the short film Hidden in the Lights, he is the protagonist, portraying a mentally troubled man. Speaking about getting under the skin of a schizophrenic man, Sukhada says, “Director Renjith Milan had explained the character in detail to me, so I did not have to undergo any special preparation. He had given me the script in advance. The director had done a detailed study about the character and explained it to me. I used my own imagination while executing it.”

Sukhada’s latest releases were Marubhoomiyile Aana, Pretham and Idi. Most of the roles had a comic flavour to it. When asked if he deliberately picks such roles, he denies it. “No, I do not choose them. When one is part of commercial cinema, one naturally gets to play roles that you have successfully pulled off in the past. But then it is movies like Hidden in the Lights that gives a break and lets an actor show a different face.”

He explains that some of the big screen characters that he has pulled off are a result of the inputs he has gained from reading and observing. “For example, if we take the judge from Punyalan Agarbathi’s, I have never come across a judge on screen who cracks jokes. But I happened to observe judges in court in real life and they are very different, some of them even joke and laugh.”

Sunil Sukhada was part of ameture theatre before entering the world of films. “I was part of a play called Spinal Chord. When it was staged at Ernakulam, director Martin Prakkat happened to watch it.” Martin Prakkat’s Best Actor was his first movie and the rest is history. About the kind of roles he prefers to play, he says, “I am comfortable with any kind of character.”

His upcoming projects are Kavi Udheshichathu, produced by actor Asif Ali, Basheerinte Premalekhanam and Mamootty starrer The Great Father.