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Photo:H.Vibhu

For posterity Actor-director Revathi, having her handprits taken for the Walk of Fame at Cinema Paradiso

Refreshingly, sans starry airs, Revathy wears her grey hair and experience gracefully. This is the Revathy of ‘Mitr My Friend’ and ‘Phir Milenge,’ the director – not a trace of ‘Kilukkam”s madcap. That is the role that she finds fulfilling.

“Acting and directing are very different, both the experiences are varied. Acting is a holiday; when I feel like a holiday I act in a film. Conversely with directing, I am involved in the process from the seed right up to the last shot. It is a whole process of creation that is fulfilling,” says Revathy. The director in her comes out as she discusses the right angle with a cameraperson of a TV channel.

There are actors who confess that watching themselves onscreen makes them nervous, not Revathy though. “I watch myself on screen, I do critically look at each performance but there is that part which goes ‘Okay, there is that thing which could have been better, but I like this part of me better! I am good’ that is what acting is all about,” she laughs. That is narcissism? “Yes, acting is about narcissism,” she admits.

It has been a while since Revathy has donned the greasepaint for Malayalam films, or even watched one. “ Acting in a mother’s role is not enough. There have been a couple of scripts but not interesting enough,” Revathy confesses. The last Malayalam film that she saw was ‘Thanmathra,’ which she liked immensely. “I called up Mohan [Mohanlal] to congratulate him on his acting, it was real good work,” she recalls.

And how has it been interacting with Mohanlal over the years, the pair has delivered quite a few box office hits, “I rarely get to meet Mohan, actually it has been a while since I met him. I am in touch with Suhasini, Radhika among others… who are not really contemporaries, but we have common ground” she says.

Although she has not been watching Malayalam films, she is all praise for Meera Jasmine, “She is a very good actress, and she will do anything to make her role as best as possible.” Kavya and Navya too figure in her list.

Her maiden directorial venture ‘Mitr, My Friend’ and ‘Phir Milenge,’ by her admission, dealt with human relations and the next script that she is working on too will delve into human relationships. That brings us to Salman Khan, with whom she acted in ‘Love’ and then directed him 17 years later in ‘Phir Milenge.’

“When I acted with him, he was a newcomer, barely a few films old. And what I remember about him is that he used to be very punctual, on the dot. When it came to ‘Phir Milenge’ it was the same, if the shoot was to begin at 7.00 am, he would be there on location at 6.45 a.m. Besides he is a good human being, that is my experience with him,” Revathy reminisces.

She refuses to divulge anything about her next film except that she is working on one. Acknowledging that the break from acting and direction has been long, she says, “Taking a break is good. I believe that a break is rejuvenating and prepares the ground for good work.”

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