What better news on Women’s Day than an honour for a movie that discusses a sole woman standing up against domestic abuse at her home! Ottamuri Velicham bagged not one but four honours when the Kerala State Film Awards were declared – for the best feature film, editor, supporting actress and a special jury award for the heroine – Vinitha Koshy. Vinitha first thought that it was a prank when someone messaged her that she had won the award. “When I got a call from a news reporter, I realised it wasn’t. Being in the fray with an actor like Parvathy itself is a huge honour for me,” she gushes.
Having made an entry into filmdom as Lovely teacher in Aanandam, Vinitha was always seen in humorous roles, Dubsmash clips and comic videos. That she perfectly pulled off the role of a domestic violence victim in Rahul Riji Nair’s Ottamuri Velicham came as a surprise to many. Laughing, she says, “No one could picturise me as a serious person, but I actually love to do serious roles. In Ottamuri Velicham, I play a newly-wed woman living in a single-room house with her husband’s family. The film deals with her inconveniences related to the lack of privacy and domestic violence. Finally, unable to suffer more, she reacts. The role was intense, something I had never done before.”
A non-commercial film, Ottamuri Velicham had a cast and crew who wholeheartedly worked towards bringing out a quality film. “The dedication level of the team was very inspiring as they were not eyeing monetary benefits. Our hope was on film festivals and never in our wildest dreams had we expected four state awards! Even the submission for awards happened on the last day after censoring. Ask her if the role was challenging, Vinitha feels, “More than challenging, I would say, it was a happy role for me. Happy because it was offering me a chance to prove myself, to break the mould.” The film has been sent to various international festivals and the makers are planning a theatrical release soon.
