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Innocent steals the show off screen

Actor Innocent

Stealing the show is not a rare feat for popular actor Innocent.

His versatility knew no bounds at a non-filmi function here on Friday.

As the chief guest at a product launch ceremony organised by the Catholic Syrian Bank, the actor had a few tales to tell on his association with banks.

In his youth, there were times when he had to wait silently and patiently to withdraw money from the bank. The bank staff used to insist on maintaining silence.

And the young Innocent was under the impression that the bank might withhold the money if he broke silence.

His relative, settled in U.S., had described about ATMs there, much before they were introduced in India.

“I thought the money could be drawn whenever one wanted. I did not know that the person had to deposit too”.

He had tried his hands in business prior to entering the film field.

He had opened a general store at Irinjalakkuda. One day, a beautiful girl came and asked for ‘Royal jasmine’ perfume. Innocent knew he had no stock of it, but did not want to disappoint the girl.

He pretended to be searching for it and finally told her to come two days later so that he could keep it ready.

The next day he closed his shop to go to Thrissur to purchase the perfume. The girl came the following day. “What is the price,” she asked. “You can take it,” he said, meaning that she need not pay.

A few hours later, a well-built man, a military man, came to the shop and asked, “You give perfume to girls free of charge?” The man was her husband.

Innocent recalls, “I had looked for the ‘thali’ on her neck before indulging in the free trade. It was not there. She must have concealed it.”

On his entry into films, he says, “I had thought that I would be acting with all beautiful damsels. The roles I got initially were that of a guard closing or opening the gate. Later, I had to act along with all the old women. It seemed as if the directors were keen on digging out the grave to bring pairs for me.”

R. Ramabhadran Pillai

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