'The fire is still in me after 22 years'

Shobha Warrier

If one were to say Mohanlal was going to act in two Hindi films, the statement is rather misleading.

It is true, yet not exactly true. Mohanlal has always been a reluctant hero as far as acting in other languages is concerned.

It required a lot of persuasion from Mani Ratnam to make him accept Iruvar.

Recently, Kamal Haasan tried to rope him in for Thenali, but Mohanlal politely refused the role, which eventually went to Jayaram.

Mohanlal is one actor who is contented with what he is doing in Malayalam. In all his interviews, he stresses the fact that he does not plan anything in life and that he has no dreams, no ambitions and no goals in life.

He says, "The fire that I had in me when I first faced the camera in 1978 as a student is there in me even today, even after 22 years."

And, it is this 'fire' that endows all the characters that he portrays with a unique dimension, however inane they be.

When other actors enthusiastically react to awards, he turns philosophical. When others long for challenging roles, he is satisfied with what he does. It is this attitude to life that has given him a serene and contented disposition, and it is this calm spirituality in his eyes that attracted a director like Kumar Sahni.

That was the only reason why he wanted Mohanlal to play the lead role in his new film which incidentally will be made, based on late N Govindan’s creation. Kumar Sahni will make the film in Malayalam and obviously in Hindi, too.

The second Hindi film is Shaji N Karun’s new film based on T Padmanabhan's short story, Kadal.

Shaji N Karun's film, starring Jaya Bachchan and Mohanlal, is actually a trilingual to be made in Malayalam, Hindi and English.

After Vaanaprastham, these two films will be two more milestones in Mohanlal's illustrious career as an actor.