In
the early 1980s, Jayaram was the star at the Sree Sankara College in
Kalady. He was good at mimicry, mono act, and had won the best actor
and best comedian awards at inter-collegiate festivals. But his
throne was shaky.
For an upcoming college festival, the top comics of
the Kala Bhavan had been invited to perform. “I realised that if
they came, they would completely overshadow me,” says Jayaram. So
he went to Kochi and watched one of their shows intently. On the
evening of the day they were supposed to perform, Jayaram played a
masterstroke. He enacted their entire programme in the morning
itself.
So,
when the troupe arrived, the students informed them that they had
already seen the show. “They became extremely angry with me,”
says Jayaram. “They returned to Kala Bhavan and told the director,
Fr. Abel, that a criminal case should be initiated against me.”
But
the legendary Fr. Abel had a different reaction. “Fr. Abel said
that if a person, who saw our programme once, could enact it
perfectly then he is a person of talent,” says Jayaram. “Instead
of initiating a criminal case, we should invite him to join our
troupe.”
As
a result, Jayaram joined the Kala Bhavan troupe in September, 1983.
He was with them for four years. “I did more than 3000 performances
in Kerala, all over India and abroad,” says Jayaram.
The
group would bring out videocassettes of their performances which were
extremely popular and sold well.
Meanwhile,
well-known director Padmarajan was searching for a new hero for his
film, ‘Aparan’. His son, Anantha Padmanabhan, gave his father a
video cassette and said that there was a mimicry artiste worth
looking at. Immediately Padmarajan said, “Mimicry is not a good
art. It is a copy of what other people do. I don't want such a person
in my film.”
But
Anantha finally persuaded his father to have a look. And the director
liked what he saw. “Padmarajan Sir called and offered me a role,”
says Jayaram. “It was a turning point in my life.” Shooting began
on February 18, 1988.
Jayaram
played a dual character. “The actions taken by a criminal is borne
by another, who looks like him,” says Jayaram. The film was a box
office hit and established Jayaram as a bright star of Mollywood.
Today, Jayaram is celebrating his 25th year in the
industry, having acted in more than 250 Malayalam and Tamil films.
Asked
the reasons for his enduring success and popularity, Jayaram says,
“Work as sincerely as possible. Give more than 100 per cent in your
job. That is probably the reason why, so far, no producer or
director, who has been associated with me, has ever said they will
not work with me again.”
Another
reason had been the extraordinary talent in Mollywood working
together at the same time during the 1980s and 90s. They included
Sankaradi, Tilakan, Nedumudi Venu, Oduvil Unnikrishnan, Mamukoya,
Innocent, Jagathy Sreekumar, Kuthiravattam Pappu and Cochin Haneefa.
“They were exceptional people,” says Jayaram. “When you were
pitted against them, you had to perform better. So, you improved
automatically.”
And
the improved Jayaram is as busy as ever. His latest film is ‘Bharya
Athra Pora’ (My wife is not that good). “It is one of the best
roles I have played,” he says. “Women will be able to identify
with the characters.” Jayaram is also busy shooting for veteran
director Joshy’s film, ‘ Kashmir ’.
So,
a quarter century later, the mimicry artist has become a true
original.
(Sunday Magazine, The New Indian Express, South India and Delhi)
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