At the age of 72, Vijayaraghavan is in a good mood. In pookkalamIn , he plays a 100-year-old hero who files for divorce when he learns that his wife was having an extramarital affair. but in neymarWhat was released after that saw him as a cool, colourful, loud dad to a teen, even playing to the gallery with whistle-worthy scenes.
Jagdish, 67, is in no mood to slow down. Gradually moving from comedy to serious roles, the actor has proved his mettle in serious roles rorschach, Kappa And male love,
Jagdish Inn rorschach
, Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Ashokan, 61, is happily cherry-picking roles these days. ration shop dealer Nanpakkal Nerthu Mayakkam It was exactly the kind of role he had been waiting for and now the actor has had some solid roles like the tough dadintekkkakoru premodarnu,
Thanks to new-age directors and writers, these senior actors are no longer relegated to unimportant supporting roles.
Ashokan Inn intakkakkoru premodarnu
, Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“I am excited that there is a generation of filmmakers and writers who create characters like these, 100-year-old heroes of film. pookkalamWhich is inspired by a real event in Italy,” says Vijayaraghavan, who painted Grease 53 years ago, first for the stage and later, for the big screen.
pookkalamDirector Ganesh Raj says, “Kutettan (known as Vijayaraghavan in the industry) was my first choice for the role of Ittoop. I admire his work and always felt he is an under-explored actor There were discussions on what Ittup should look like, but what you see on screen is his creation. Kuttetan was so committed to the role that he didn’t do any other films for months. It’s not easy for an actor who doing multiple character roles.
Actor Vijayaraghavan | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
For 25 days, the actor sat for four hours a day for make-up to become Ittoop. He lost 10 kgs, used dentures to change the shape of his jaw, shaved his eye brows, changed his voice and worked on his body language to become Ittop with the help of make-up artist Ronex Xavier . “Dubbing was difficult. I had to change my voice and it put a strain on my voicebox. I had to rest my voice after dubbing,” says the actor.
“I enjoy working on the look of my characters, as was the case with Cheradi Kariya (solo)Appachayee (Rudram)ramanathan (Shipyilalah)Sankaran (country)puppy (Leela) Etcetera. I can play the character well only if the look suits it. I am excited to play characters that offer something different.’
Actor Jagdish | Photo credit: Hari R Krishnagarh
Jagadish also has a theater background, having studied under Vayla Vasudevan Pillai. Writer, singer and television anchor Jagdish also says young directors are offering him interesting roles. With comedies over the years, he won a lot of fans with his characters. Also he played lead role in movies like Sthalthe Pradhan Payyans, Griha Pravesham And welcome to kodaikanal In the early 90s.
There was also an attempt at parallel cinema – MP Sukumaran Nair Jalamsham (2014). Leela He played the character of the cunning Thankappan Nair who abuses his daughter. “Even though the seeds of change were sown LeelaIt took time for meaty roles to come. Finally, Ashraf, the corrupt policeman rorschach, opened doors for performance-oriented roles. Then came Jabbar, the protagonist’s ally Kappaand Dilip, Sepoy In male love, says the actor who made his debut in my dear kuttichathan (1984).
Nisam BashirDirector of the Mammootty-starrer rorschach, believes that Jagadish is again an actor whose potential has not been tapped. “We have mostly seen hyperactive Jagdish Chetan on screen. But I knew there was much more in him as an actor. It was great working with him as he knows the craft and doesn’t even shy away from going for retakes if needed,” says Nisam, adding that the actor is also a part of his next project.
Jagdish says that while he used to play serious roles in amateur theatre, he handled comedy in plays staged in his college. “It carried over to the movies. The director and the writer were not convinced about casting me in an older role. [Director] Lal Jose once said that he could not see me playing a father. People believe that looking young makes me happy. However, that’s not true if it comes at the cost of a good role!” he laughs.
Actor Ashokan | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Ashokan, who came into films to become a singer and ended up as an actor at the age of 17, played the unlikely hero in veteran P Padmarajan’s debut film, Peruvazhiyambalam (1979). Having worked in over 200 films with stalwarts like KG George and Adoor Gopalakrishnan early in his career, the actor says, “A good team can always make all the difference for an actor. that’s what happened in Nanpakkal Nerthu Mayakkam, People have expectations about a Lijo Jose Pellissery film because none of his characters go unnoticed,” says Ashokan.
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Indrans, 67, is the best example of how an actor can reinvent his craft. From being a comedian in his early films, he cemented his position by playing serious characters, including negative roles, and playing lead roles as well. Another actor whose potential is being celebrated these days is Jaffar Idukki, who has graduated from minor roles to playing the protagonist. Shammi Tilakan and Lalu Alex are among the other actors who have got few opportunities to break their stereotypes.
In the case of female actors, Urvashi’s charm is still worth watching. Far from small roles, Bindu Panicker was a revelation rorschach As Sita, a character with gray shades. Though not a senior in terms of her age or number of films, Poornima Indrajith proved her credentials in Rajeev Ravi’s film. Thurmukham in which she played a character in her 30s and early 60s.
The actor admitted that he regrets acting in some films as he didn’t have much to do in them. He added, “Also, there have been films in which I have been noticed, irrespective of the screen time. For example, in some of my early films like yavnika And Gayatri Devi Ente Amma, I had only a few scenes but that character is still remembered. my character in congratulation There was one scene but that comedy sequence went viral,” says Ashokan, who has played hero, anti-hero, comedian, supporting roles and even made guest appearances. another favorite is the one that’s in intakkakkoru premodarnu, She further added, “I haven’t played a character like this and I enjoyed playing that look.”
The actor admits that he became selective about his roles. “Now I know how you can survive in the industry,” says Ashokan. Meanwhile, he is making his debut as music director for Babu Thiruvalla Manasu And is acting in two Malayalam web series.
Vijayaraghavan, on the other hand, explains that he is “going with the flow”. Even though I want variety in roles, I am open to doing all kinds of films. Otherwise I will sit at home. Apart from films, he is also working in web series.
Talking about longevity, Jagdish believes, “It is important to keep pace with the times and it is possible if you carefully observe the changes around you, be it in the behavior of people or in the society ” Quite happy to be “promoted” for father roles in upcoming films, he says, “I am playing father to Basil Joseph, Arjun Ashokan and Prithviraj in their upcoming films. I want to be Mammootty’s father someday.” I can also play the role of