I still can’t move on from being Mariyamma: Dushara Vijayan

In a matter of just five days, from being an aspiring actor, Dushara Vijayan has gone on to become one of the most sought after actors in the south. Her role of Mariyamma in Pa Ranjith’s Sarpatta Parambarai has been widely spoken about across the internet and away from it. “I don’t think I will ever get out of this feeling. I was nervous before the release of Sarpatta Parambarai on how people would react to the character. It is a beautiful feeling when the audience are able to connect to the character and accept it. That is what has happened with Mariyamma,” the actress told DT Next. It was a roller-coaster ride for Dushara before she broke into the cast of Sarpatta. “Ranjith had called me for a look test and said that I didn’t match his expectations. He wanted someone with a duskier tone. However, I went on to audition for the role. I was given the scene in which I comment on Vembuli’s physique to Kabilan. Even then I wasn’t sure that I would make it. Later, I was called for a photoshoot in which I had to carry water. That is when I started believing that the director is convinced and I would make it,” she opened up. 

She tells us that it the workshop helped her in understanding who Mariyamma is and what she goes through in the story. “When I listened to the charcter sketch, initially I thought that Dushara and Mariyamma are poles apart. As the shooting happened, I could realise the similarities we both had. Ranjith put me in that comfort zone and gave me the liberty to understand my character. Also, in the workshop we had prior to the film shooting, he made it clear that he wouldn’t enact scenes to any of us because every character would end up looking the same. So I changed my body language accordingly to go about it. Even after the film has released, Mariyamma’s traces are still in me. She is not a character but an emotion, a vibe that anybody could easily connect with,” Dushara explained. 

On talking about Arya being her co-star Dushara recalled an incident and said, “Usually people say that Arya is playful on the sets. For Sarpatta, it was a different story altogether. He was in his zone and hardly spoke. Even Ranjith had asked if he is okay or if he is uncomfortable because of his unusual silence. We resumed the shoot after lockdown and my scene was to grind turmeric in a stone mortar. Arya saw that in the monitor and took the mic in his hands to ask if this is what I have been doing for the last seven months. It cracked us up. He is such a humble person despite the stardom he has.” The actress will be next seen in Vasanthabalan’s directorial. “He is another visionary like Ranjith. They both know how to execute the content they write. That is very crucial for the film’s success. Apart from Vasanthabalan’s film I have been listening to scripts and haven’t signed anything yet,” she concluded.