COLUMN:
LOCATION DIARY
Actor Jomol talks about
her experiences in the films, Mayilpeelikkavu’ and ‘Punjabi
House’
The shoot for the
song, ‘Onnanam Kunninmel’ in the film, Mayilpeelikkavu
(1998) was taking place inside a hall at Thiruvananthapuram. Jomol
was clad in a black top and leggings and black shoes. She was acting
opposite Kunchacko Boban, who was also dressed in a black jacket and
trousers.
The floor was made of
a large white sheet with black etchings at different places. It was
a dance sequence. But as she began moving on the floor, Jomol
suddenly slipped and hit her head on the floor.
“I felt a severe
pain in my head,” she says. “Then I was rushed to the hospital.
I was given an injection to lessen the pain. Then the doctor told me
to rest. So I returned to the hotel. After a while the pain became
less. I wanted to resume shooting but Anil [Babu, director] said no.
The shooting resumed the next day.”
After pain, she
experienced a moment of joy. Jomol was aware she was on the
short-list for the best actress state award.
On one particular day,
it was announced that the awards would be announced in the
afternoon. But post -lunch, there was no announcement. Then Jomol
was told that the jury was still going through the screenings. There
was no announcement the entire day. “I was quite anxious,” says
Jomol.
The next day Jomol got
a call at her hotel and told that she had won: for ‘Ennu Swantham
Janakikutty’.
Expectedly, she got a
lot of congratulatory calls from friends, colleagues and the media.
But her happiest moment occurred when, on the set, her father [KA
John] came and gave her a tap on the back. “My dad is a
non-expressive type of person, so this pat showed how much he felt
proud of me,” says Jomon. “It was the most memorable moment for
me.”
Jomol had another
memorable moment on the sets of ‘Punjabi House’. The climax was
being shot in a house at Kochi in March, 1998. All the top stars
were there. They included Dileep, Lal, Janardhanan, NF Varghese,
Cochin Haneefa, Harisree Ashokan as well as the directors Rafi and
MeCartin.
Then a call came on
the landline. “Usually, in those times, when a call came on the
landline, it was only if there was an emergency,” says Jomol.
“Somebody attended and they said it was for me. As I walked
towards the phone, I felt nervous. I was wondering what happened and
why I had got the call, and that, too, on the landline of this
house.”
A smiling Dileep said,
“Jomol, it may be a call from your college saying that you had
missed too many classes.”
When Jomol picked up
the phone, it was Dinesh Panicker, the producer of
‘Mayilpeelikkavu’.
He said, “Congrats.
Did you get the news?”
Jomol said, “No, I
did not get any news?”
Then Dinesh told Jomol
she had won a national film award.
Jomol started laughing
and said, “You are joking.”
Dinesh said, “No, I
am serious. You have really won the National Award.”
Jomol was shocked to
hear the news. Later, she came to know that it was a Special Jury
Mention award for her role in ‘Ennu Swantham Janakikutty’.
When she returned to
the set, everybody was curious to know who had called Jomol.
Jomol said, “I have
won a National Award.”
Immediately, there was
a collective, “What!!!?”
Soon, there was an
eruption of joy on the set. People ordered ice cream and chocolates.
It was distributed to everybody. There was loud clapping and cheers.
“I was in a daze,” says Jomol. “I was still not sure. But when
it was announced on the TV, I finally realised it was true.”
(The
New Indian Express, Kochi, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram)
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