I don’t want to be in my co-stars' shadow, says Hide N Seek actor Shilpa Manjunath

CHENNAI: Fresh from winning critical acclaim for playing a cop in Hide N Seek, Shilpa Manjunath talks to us in the middle of her busy shooting schedule. “I could now breathe. I was initially scared because I wanted all the good work to be appreciated by the audience and I am basking on it now. When there is a star opposite to you, he will attract all the attention. With Hide N Seek, all the attention was on me. The onus was on me to make the audience sit through the film. I am now overwhelmed with the reception,” she says.

Shilpa didn’t think twice to play a cop and to shoulder a film at this point in time of her career. “I have in fact refused to be a part of quite a few love stories. While many heroines look forward to working in romantic stories, I felt I have already done it. Hence, I wanted to be a part of stories that are beyond a lover girl. I can do more than that and I shouldn’t regret it when I look back at my career graph after a few years. I do characters that people should believe that no one else could have done better,” says the actor with some tone of confidence.

Shilpa says that be it Parvathy in Kaali or Vaishnavi in Hide N Seek, she was surprised but enjoyed doing characters that weren’t run-of-the-mill. “Nobody would have expected me to do an urban chick character of Tara in Ispade Rajavum Idhaya Raniyum after a film like Kaali. Even my upcoming film with Karthi and Nalan Kumarasamy, Vaa Vaathiyaar will have me in a role that will be along the lines of Neelambari in Padaiyappa. The character I play is fierce, commanding, audacious yet stylish. And people in this combination tend to be called slightly insane in the head too. My role is such that my father, played by Sathyaraj sir, will think twice before dealing with me,” she says with a smile.

She will be next seen in a Thiru directorial bankrolled by Studio Green. “There is Jai, Vani Bhojan and Varalaxmi among others. It is an anthology and my portion revolves around a triangular love story. If I have taken another love story it means it will be on par with Ispade… If I am not choosing a decent love story, it means that I am demeaning my image of Tara/Kannamma,” remarks Shilpa.

Be it Perazhagi ISO or Singapenney, Shilpa hasn’t shied away from shouldering a film or experimenting across genres. “I want to experiment and also, I don’t want to be in the shadow of my male co-stars. There are several A-list female actors whose fame is overshadowed by their male co-stars. Yes, they get the name and fame but at what cost? They are able to sustain it only if they continue doing good female centric film and many go into oblivion before they prove themselves. Though I may take long enough to be recognised for my good work as a performer, I know that I am on the right track,” she finishes.