Tuesday, June 19, 2012

“He does not have the airs of an actor”

COLUMN: Spouse's Turn 

Betty talks about her life with husband Munna

By Shevlin Sebastian

Betty got an invite from her friend, Sarah George, to see the preview of the Tamil film, ‘Kandein Kadhalai’. At that time, she was working in a public-relations agency at Chennai. At the show, Betty was introduced to actor Munna by Sarah. “I was instantly attracted to him,” says Betty. “He did not have the airs of an actor. Instead, he was a simple, sweet, and down-to-earth person.”

After the film, Betty complimented Munna on his acting. He plays the boyfriend to the heroine, [Tamanna], but loses her in the end to the hero, acted by Bharat.

From then on, they remained in touch through SMSes and phone calls. On December 20, 2009, Munna invited Betty to the inauguration of his coffee shop, S-Cafe. “We had a long conversation that day,” says Betty. “I met all his friends and cousins.”

Thereafter they went for a long car ride in which Munna told her about his family and spoke about life. “I was wondering why he was telling me all this,” says Betty. “Then he asked me whether I was planning to get married. I said yes.”

At that time, Munna was recovering from a broken engagement. Soon, Munna’s family met Betty’s parents in Thrissur and a wedding date was fixed.

The couple tied the knot on February 7, 2010. So, within three months of meeting Betty, they had got married. “We are crazy about each other,” says Betty. But now, after two-and-a-half years of marriage, Betty has a clearer picture of Munna’s character.

Munna never forces anything on me. He allows me to dress in any way I like. He gives me a lot of freedom and encourages me to do whatever work I like to do,” says Betty, who is doing freelance online movie promotion.  

Negative points: “When he gets angry he never opens up,” she says. “Instead, he will remain silent. I get irritated by that. When I lose my temper I tell him what is in my heart.”

Both of them had a heart-stopping experience on December 4, 2010. Munna, Betty, her brother, Stalin and wife, Dhanya, and a cousin Edwin George had gone for a brief holiday to Nelliyampathy. One early morning, they decided to visit a forest. “So we hired a jeep,” says Betty. “But the local people warned us that there was a rogue elephant somewhere in the vicinity. We did not see it. We went to the top of a hill, but when we were returning, the elephant stood on the road staring at us.”

The road was narrow and there was a deep gorge on one side and rocks on the other side.
The driver stopped the jeep and told the group that they all had to flee. “So we ran back the way we came, shouting and screaming,” says Betty. “The elephant started chasing us, but it was rushing through the forest, instead of taking the road.”

The group, along with the driver, reached the top of the hill and waited with panting breaths. For a while, because of dense fog, they could not see the animal. But suddenly they saw it making its way to the top. So they again ran down the road and reached the jeep and got in. The driver pressed the accelerator, and they made good their escape. “We were exhausted,” says Betty. “But we thanked God for the narrow escape.”

But the incident left an impact on Betty.  “Whenever I see an elephant, nowadays, I begin shivering with fear,” she says.

Anyway, life is going on. Whenever Munna is at home, he is busy indulging in his passion of watching films and cricket. “He spends a lot of time in the gym and plays badminton in the evenings,” she says. “If there is no shooting, Munna will relax and put on weight. But once he has signed a film, he will immediately hit the gym and get fit.”

Not surprisingly, Munna has a svelte figure and strong muscles. “He has lifted many heroines, but, till now, he has never lifted me,” says Betty, and bursts out laughing.

Yes, Betty knows that many girls are attracted to him. And when they go out in public, Munna constantly introduces Betty as his wife, but that does not faze the girls. “They just come up and hug him tightly,” she says. “It seems to me that girls like married actors, more than unmarried ones.”

So, does Betty feel insecure? “Not at all,” she says. “I trust Munna completely. I know that he loves me. To have a good marriage, you have to be loving, caring and believe in each other.”     

(The New Indian Express, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram) 

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