‘Sometimes, characters are are more mature than us, we learn from them’

As Kerala gears up for Onam festivities, Roshan Mathew is busy promoting Kuruthi that premiered on Amazon Prime on August 11. The actor who is known for doing roles that aren’t your run-on-the mill on-screen character says, “Kuruthi came to me as something that I haven’t done previously. I haven’t been considered before for a role like this. That got me excited and was challenging too,” he begins. Roshan plays Ibrahim, a man who confronts his own beliefs. “Ibrahim is one of the most complex characters I was entrusted with by director Manu. I believe I have given my best and that is the conviction with which I am currently sitting. If those layers are convincingly narrated, I believe it will be a great watch. Also, Kuruthi is a film where every character questions their own decisions and beliefs. So, to play Ibrahim, I had to understand what the character is going through emotionally even as I began shooting for it and empathise with it,” he adds. Roshan quotes his colleague Parvathy Thiruvothu. “She is someone with who I have worked a lot. She tells me that she has learned something or the other from each of the characters she has played. Similarly, when I played Ibrahim in Kuruthi or Ameer in Moothon, I have had deja-vu moments off camera and have told myself this is how Ameer or Ibrahim would have reacted to a particular situation. Sometimes, our characters are more mature than us and we learn from them depending on what the situation is,” the actor tells us.

Roshan was lauded worldwide for his character of Ameer in Moothon at a time even before OTT was a thing. However, he says that a role like that made him believe that there are projects where everything falls in place. “In fact, I keep comparing all my characters with mine in Moothon. I try to choose films that are close to it. But there are a plethora of reasons why I choose to do roles that are somewhere close to that standard but not exactly the same. My way of approaching roles hasn’t changed too. It is unrealistic of me to expect the same standard but I keep trying,” he smiles.

Roshan opens up that he is looking forward to working with Prithviraj yet again after Kuruthi. “Three years ago, I couldn’t spend much time with him on the sets of Koode. With Kuruthi, I was with him from the first till the last. He is a great performer yet so humble. It would be great to work with him again,” says Roshan. He will also be making his debut in Tamil with Vikram’s Cobra. “Cobra is a huge project and would take time even if not for the pandemic. I can’t wait to join the sets again in the next schedule. Working with Vikram sir is an experience of sorts. I haven’t seen anyone who is as humble as he is. I am looking forward to that film as well,” he concludes.