I want to be identified as a good actor rather than a star. If you have been watching my films, you’d know that I don’t stuff too many genres into one,” Jayam Ravi begins this conversation. Ask the actor what made him choose Miruthan, and he says, “I am was well-aware of the risk, but I believe in the audience completely. They appreciate genuine, different, fresh and innovative attempts. The film is an experimental venture, which I took up with a lot of excitement.”
Ravi justifies his decision to explore his options and move away from what he was doing in the past. “Any film has its own limitations. As a team, we found it challenging. I took this in a positive way and thought, why shouldn’t I do it? I told the director that zombies are a western concept and that if he had local elements to back up the script, I was game for the project,” he smiles and adds, “I’d say this is a high octane action sci-fi, which won’t disturb the audience visually. I play a traffic police inspector, who doesn’t want to take risks in life, and Lakshmi Menon plays a doctor. The film also has a one-sided romance between Lakshmi’s and my character.”
It seems like it took a while for Ravi to come in terms with what he was going to perform onscreen. “All this while, I have been doing regular roles. When I was given something western, I couldn’t adapt to the concept immediately. But, as an actor I watch a wide range of cinema and read a lot. So I took references from many sources, and completed the film,” he says.
Quiz him about how he modifies his image for every film, and he says, “I am very glad the acceptance level is 100 percent for each and every character that I do. For Thani Oruvan, I got rave reviews; for Bhoologam I got recognition and awards. Otherwise, I would have gotten stuck with just the ‘chocolate-boy’ image people gave me (smiles). I was struggling to break the stereotype, because it felt weird being called ‘boy’-next-door after becoming the father of two kids — I’m a grown up! That’s when I decided to take up new genres like the transgender role I did in Aadhi Bhagawan. Though the film didn’t do well, my character was talked about. And that’s what matters at the end,” he signs off.
