Becoming Aarathi: Malavika Mohanan on Pa. Ranjith’s ‘Thangalaan’ and why it was the most physically-intense challenge of her career
The actor speaks about the monumental effort it took to become Aarathi in Pa Ranjith’s ‘Thangalaan,’ empowering women with agency, and why social media is a vital tool for actors in the modern age
(Originally published in The Hindu on August 12, 2024)
On being a bookworm and the Wayanad tragedy
You can sense an infectious excitement cloaking the nervousness in Malavika Mohanan, just days ahead of the release of her film Thangalaan. Reading, she says, helps keep her peace. “We are so exposed to screens these days and after a long day on my phone, I feel my brain getting numb. So, reading helps reset,” she says, adding it also helps her with her acting. “Because acting is imagining. I am currently reading The Way of the World by Nicolas Bouvier.”
Whenever she finds a break, she visits the stretch between Masinagudi and Wayanad. “This intersection of the three states has some of the most beautiful natural landscapes. In central India, I favour Tadoba and Kanha for tiger sightings,” says Malavika.
The thought of Wayanad, and how the haven is still reeling from the devastating landslide, weighs heavily on Malavika. “The only land I own is in Wayanad. I have close friends there and I have worked very closely with the tribal community in Wayanad. I was devastated to hear about the landslide, and have been organising charity donations to help out.”
On bringing her character of Aarathi to life in ‘Thangalaan’
In Thangalaan, a period drama set in the Kolar Gold Fields, Malavika plays a fierce, magical entity named Aarathi. It’s a character based on a popular myth from the region, an aspect that infuses magical realism into this Pa. Ranjith directorial. Malavika always wanted to play a regal princess in a mythological drama, but Thangalaan isn’t quite that… “I had a different visual in my mind (laughs). But I have always wanted to play a powerful role. It’s always lovely to look like the quintessential characters in movies like Baahubali or Ponniyin Selvan, but I couldn’t have aimed for a role like Aarathi because nothing of that sort had been done before in Indian movies.”
This lack of references to turn to is one of the many reasons that made the film a monumental task for her. First and foremost, the actor was…
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