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Sudha Chandran all set for gray matter!
Piyush Roy (HT Style)
Mumbai, October 26, 2006
Sudha Chandran is set to become Indian television's latest lady in white and she seems quite gung-ho about her makeover. Chandran goes from black to white in Sahara One's forthcoming serial Solhah Singaarr.
Dressed in a white sari with light embroidery on the border, a white blouse with arm length sleeves, a rudraksh mala in hand, a necklace of white beads and a long yellow tika dividing her forehead, she could easily pass off for one of the sadhvis on Aastha.
Albeit that touch of glamour sets Chandran apart. So what's the mother of all TV vamps doing in a dadi maa avatar? "I wanted to break away from the monotony of negative characters that I had got into in the last five years. Even my fans were telling me that I was looking repetitive," she begins. ; ;
Does it mean that the fiery Ramola Sikand has finally mellowed? "Not exactly My character of Ammaji in Solhah Singaarr is that of strict matriarch who adheres to her values," she says, adding, "But she is not regressive like the of recently launched ammas and dadis on telly pining for a son or grandson. She believes in what she says and has seen a lot of ups and downs in her life. That's what attracted me to Ammaji's character."
Incidentally, Chandran wasn't the first choice for Ammaji's role. "Though Ammaji's role intrigued me a lot, it was initially supposed to be done by Arunaji (Aruna Irani). But once I came to know that she wasn't doing it, I was all game for the role and promptly lapped it up," says Chandran.
It was also courtesy her good equation with Jay Mehta, producer of Solhah Singaarr, who's previous offer to her for a role in Sindoor Tere Naam Ka she turned down due to her then busy schedule.
"I shoot five days a month in Chennai and 20 days in Mumbai. But they are much more professional out there. We canned 20 episodes in just five days of my last shoot in Chennai," she says.
Chandran, who's quite popular in the southern telly circuit, plays another author backed role in Jayyam, a serial currently being shown on Jaya TV "It's . a very stylised role and this time around I am making a conscious effort of setting a trend through my style," she adds.
Chandran's Ramola not only counts amongst one of the most stylised characters on TV ever; her famous signature bindis had also led to the launch of a Ramola line of bindis.
"Earlier I was decked up to kill. This is the only role where I gray my hair," she shares. But isn't she worried about getting typecast in the role of a dadi?
"Was Shah Rukh Khan typecast in the role of an old man after doing Veer-Zaara?" asks Chandran, adding, "Even Ramola was a dadi, but not many remember that perhaps because of my glamorous bearing. As Ammaji, I sport a nice chandan tika and drape a golden shawl. Perhaps now I will give a few fashion tips on making the old look good."
Black, gray and white, so what is going to be the flavour of her next character? "I am keen on doing a comedy in a full-fledged positive role," she signs off.
My favourite 5 TV roles
Ramola Sikand (Kahin Kissi Roz) She was a negative character who always played her cards right.
Zahira (Kaise Kahun): She was a down-market Muslim lady, who could laugh and cry at the same time. She was a rooted to the soil character.
Guruma (Tum Bin Jaun Kahan): A very classy woman in black, I loved the way she was decked up.
Ammaji (Solhah Singaarr): Her convictions in her beliefs and her upholding of and standing up to her traditional values is what appealed to me. The fifth one's yet to come.
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