Ashna Zaveri, whose last outing was the comedian-hero Santhanam-starrer Inimey Ippadithaan, is playing a college girl in her next film, a romantic drama, Meen Kuzhambum Mann Paanaiyum, directed by debutante filmmaker Amudeshwar. “The shoot began in Chennai a few days ago, and I am paired opposite Kalidas Jayaram. I play Pavithra, a happy-go-lucky and bubby college goer. The film centres on a son and his father,” she says and adds, “Besides exploring an intense father-son relationship, there’s also a fair dose of sentiment and romance. Kalidas and I share a Tom and Jerry kind of relationship! It’s an interesting role, personally, because it is a complete departure from what I’ve done before.”
Ashna tells us that though the title might give the impression that the movie has a rural subject, the story is quite urban. “The second schedule of the film is set to begin in Malaysia after Pongal. I can’t reveal anything more, but it’s a feel-good film,” she smiles. While Imman is the music director, Meen Kuzhambum Mann Paanaiyum has Prabhu playing Kalidas’s father and is produced by Dushyanth, grandson of the legendary actor Sivaji Ganesan.
Though Ashna hasn’t signed any film in Tamil, she doesn’t want to limit herself as an actor. “I am thankful to Santhanam for giving me a good launching pad in the south. I want to do different kinds of roles to justify my potential as an actor. It should not be like, ‘She will only do village-based roles, or only modern ones’. If it is a meaningful role even for 15 minutes, I will immediately take it up,” she says. The actress now wants to work with all the top actors in K’town: “Suriya, Vijay and Ajith are in the top league. Who wouldn’t want to act with them!” she concludes.
