Student of dance
G. JAYAKUMAR
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Despite his busy schedule as an actor, Vineeth continues to be a dedicated student of dance.
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The role of the dancer in `Chandramukhi,' no doubt, has been a turning point in my career.
DANCER AND ACTOR: Vineeth says dance is a spiritual experience for him.
Vineeth hit the headlines as a dancer who won a slew of awards at the State schools youth festival. It was again as a dancer in `Chandramukhi' that he wowed audiences Tamil Nadu.
The talented actor left a lasting impression on Malayalam film viewers with his lead role as a teenager in `Nakashatangal,' directed by Hariharan. By then he had already been in the limelight as a an accomplished stage dancer.
Although Vineeth continued to act in many movies, dance remained his his first love, acting taking a second place.
Vineeth says that he enjoys playing the character of a dancer in films. And, that he says, was one of the reasons why the role in `Chandramukhi' was special.
"After the success of `Chandramukhi,' I have been getting many offers to present dance programmes in Chennai and abroad for the Tamil Sanghams. They have accepted me," he adds with pride.
Excerpts from a chat with Vineeth.
Dance and the actor
I began dancing at the age of five. My arangetram was at Thiruvangad Temple in Thalassery. Then I learnt Bharatanatyam from Kalamandalam Saraswathy, M. T. Vasudevan Nair's wife. I am now a student of Padma Subramaniam. It's a kind of spiritual experience.
Has the image of a dancer affected his career as an actor?
It has definitely not affected my film career. I have been lucky to be offered roles with acting potential.
The role of the dancer in `Chandramukhi,' no doubt, has been a turning point in my career. That role opened a new world of opportunities in Tamil. Till then , the audience in Tamil and Telugu were not aware that I was a trained classical dancer. So, there is no question of the image of a dancer affecting my film career. It has been an added advantage.
I have acted in 90 films, which includes 18 Telugu films. At present, I am doing `Rathrimazha' directed by Lenin Rajendran. Another Malayalam film in the pipeline is by V.K. Prakash. In Tamil and Telugu there are a couple of projects by Prakashraj.
Was there a hiatus in his career when he disappeared from the screen? No, that's not true. I did my first film, M.T. Vasudevan Nair's `Edanilangal,' when I was in Class Ten (1985). `Nakashatangal' was my second film. The success of this movie gave me recognition as an actor and there was no gap at all. I was doing movies along with my studies. `Idavazhiyil oru kaalocha,' `Rithubhedam,' `Amruthamgamaya,' `Oru muthassi kadha,' `Aaranyakam' and so on were films made during that period.
For my graduation, I was a regular college student in Chennai and did some minor roles during the vacation. After graduation, I got offers to act in films like `Avaarampoo' and `Sargam.' That is when I decided to take up acting as a profession. In 1995, I was doing two Tamil movies - `Kadhaldesham' and `Sakthi.' The movies took almost a year to complete. Hence, I could not do any Malayalam films then. After that, once again, I became busy acting in Tamil and Telugu movies.
On directors and other artistes
I admire so many directors and artistes as each one of them is amazingly talented and have their own style of acting. So it's not possible for me to name any one of them. And it's amazing to be in this field as you get to meet great people and actors as your co-stars and the idea of just sharing a frame with them on the silver screen is a great honour.
Favourite films
`Avarampoo,' `Sargam,' `Ghazal,' `Kaabooliwala,' `Manathevellitheril,' `Kaadhaldesam,' `Aaropraanam' and `Chandramukhi' are some of my films which won the appreciation of the audience. As an actor all the roles I portray, whether small or big, are close to my heart.
The role in `Rathrimazha.'
"The role is that of a dancer doing a contemporary style of dance; a fusion of Kalari, Chhau and other forms. An accident confines the dancer to a wheel-chair from where he tries to create a unique dance-art production.
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