Actress Parvati Nair on intense upcoming roles, battling assumptions, and love for Bengaluru

The upcoming releases are Aalambana and Un Parvayil. I am also doing a movie called Report next, which I am shooting for next month. The former two are completed and set for release. One even went to a few festivals. My role in Un Parvayil is the most challenging role of my life to date. It is also a project wherein I had a lot more scope for performance. There were some very intense scenes. I had to play the role of a blind person. So, this role was quite challenging and interesting. My body language, walk, eye movement — everything mattered for this one. Now, I am waiting for a proper commercial release. For Aalambana, on the other hand, I play the female lead. There isn’t the same intensity in the performance like Un Parvayil, but it’s an interesting character. My character has a fun, bubbly side, is a South Indian girl next door and is a little spoiled (laughs).

Honestly, Un Parvayil is the first role where I tried a specific approach. Now, I don’t know what happens with heroine roles, but they always call you at the last minute. The same happened with this film. You don’t get ample time to research and study that character. I would love to get called for a movie earlier, where I have a few months to prepare and I really can be more involved. That’s like a dream for me. After reading the brief, once I went on set, I realised it’s such a heavy role. This was during COVID-19. We had to stop the shoot and continue again after the pandemic. For this role, I tried to stand in front of the mirror, imagine and tell some sad things to myself every day. That’s the right way to live that character. But that anguished me in real life. I realised, if I do another movie like that back to back, I’m going to be depressed. For another movie, Neerali, that I did with Mohanal, I took a 10-day course. Now, they are very particular in Malayalam cinema about acting. The fact that the movie started with my scenes and that I was acting opposite someone so big, I needed to really be good because they didn’t have any workshop or anything like that. So, I took that course. Although it was not an acting course, it was just like a holiday course, which helped me understand these things a little better. When they saw the footage, they were very impressed.

I believe it depends on the team and the size of the film. My only Hindi film (where she plays Pammi Gavaskar) was 83, which had many characters. It was hectic and intense, making it challenging to shoot real-life scenes. They successfully recreated many authentic events. I wasn't entirely happy with my character, but as a film, it's one of the most beautiful, realistic movies. It was beautifully executed. It is very challenging to create that. It's also a male-oriented film with many male actors. Getting everyone into character isn't easy. That's tough as a team, but it was enjoyable meeting 20 other people, or even 10. Many big stars, very large sets. The locations were places nobody had filmed before, like the Lords. For a cricketer, visiting Lords is a dream, so imagine going there for a movie shoot! It was a big deal. For smaller films like Un Parvayil, which we shot in Dehradun, we had lovely locations and interiors. However, for such projects, you carry the baggage of being the main character and your performance has to be perfect. Playing that character was very emotional and hence you carry that weight. To connect with that, you need to be in a particular zone. Therefore, though you are in a beautiful setting, you can't fully enjoy it. I never thought, "Wow, this is Dehradun," because from start to finish, it was a heavy film. But as a role, this was very rewarding. Additionally, some films are about the experience. I literally signed up for 83, mainly for the experience. I knew there would be many people, and even though I was paired with one of the lead actors, my role was brief because the film was packed with events. I was unsure, thinking, "Why would I do this?" But like I said, some films are about the experience — witnessing so many people from cinema coming together and seeing beautiful locations. Further, in Kannada, both films (Mr Rani and Vascodigama) I did were purely experimental. I saw the team's passion. They crowdfunded these projects. They made movies they’re truly passionate about. They said, "We somehow make enough money, we pool together enough to create this product.” I admire that passion. It was inspiring to see. Both films conveyed messages about education. I experienced it firsthand—parents wanting you to be an engineer, regardless of your passion. The other, Maskodigama, highlighted the flaws in the education system. At that time, not many spoke about this. So, whenever someone makes a film to make a difference, I like to support it. I have taken different reasons for accepting projects in my career. Some for the character, some for the team, some because it's with a dream director. It’s a mix.

 When you study abroad, you meet people from all over the world, and you have a very different culture. I studied in Trivandrum for three years and that's the amount of time I have spent in Kerala all my life. The rest was in Karnataka, whether it's Manipal or Bangalore. Before that, it was Abu Dhabi. And now I am in Chennai. It was a world of difference. I had literally stopped going to school in between, saying it's so hard for me to go. Because there (abroad), your teachers are like your friends. You don't call them ‘ma'am’ or ‘sir’. You just call them by their names. They are like your friends. They are very casual.When I came to India, there was a whole new world of politics. Even though my parents put me in a highly rated school, I wanted to leave. But difficulties teach you. I stopped school again, then they pushed me back. Things became great eventually, but it was hard initially because student life is culturally so different. I did my first TV show during my 10th grade, and my first ad. Everything started from there. Everything had a reason for why it happened to eventually what you became. But it's not easy. Shifting from Bangalore to Chennai was the hardest thing. I was so depressed. But every time I run back to Bangalore, I feel so much better.

Now, I like to wear fabrics which seem more skin-friendly. This and my health are somethings I really research a lot on. I’m also trying to consciously switch to some better outfits, better clothes, skin-friendly fabrics and what is comfortable for me — wearing clothes that allow me to breathe properly. Also, I used to shop a lot before. Now, I literally just mix and match things from the past and I create my own ensembles.

I’m a lot into being hydrated because I think, in certain weather, your skin tends to get dry. That’s also an indication of not having enough water. I also try to put at least seemingly healthier things into my body. I try to be active. But do I work out every single day? Definitely not. I’ll be lying if I say I work out every single day. Maybe, if I have a project and I need to look fit, I’ll give it more importance at that time. But otherwise, yes, I try to eat healthy. I have that taste for healthy food too. I’m not fond of junk food. I love my rice, vegetables and fruits. I try to avoid sugar when it’s not needed and I think that makes a world of difference.

My husband himself (laughs). You have known the person for a couple of years before you get married. But when you are married, it still seems like another person. Because married life, it’s so different. I was also a little surprised that the people working in the film that I signed earlier and about to begin filming with, they tried to talk to me for some days, asking, “did you put on weight by any chance?” And I thought to myself, “oh my god, what is this assumption that once you’re married, do you look like an aunty then? Or you become fat then? Or people assume because you’re married, you are probably pregnant.” I also feel that the offers reduces to an extent, especially at the start. When they read a headline, like you’re married to a business guy, they assume that means you don’t act anymore. I don’t know what that very old school concept is. So, whenever I get an opportunity, I’m always trying to tell them, “oh, you know, it’s the same.” When I married him, even he and his family were supportive of this career. This is what I’ve been doing, so I’ll do it anyway. No one’s going to stop me (laughs).

I would say be ambitious, be focused, but never be too hard on yourself, because you’ll definitely have ups and downs in this industry. A lot of people who disappeared came back with a bang; a lot of people who were prominent just disappeared. Sometimes, we just take too many people’s opinions and then regret that decision. So, I would say always ask yourself and forget anybody else’s opinion. Nobody will know unless you try it yourself. Also, many people might give you hopes and expectations. Don’t trust anybody. If their projects work out, well and good. But don’t ever depend on it. I think, that it’s very important to make your own choices and not to trust anybody blindly, even if it’s someone you know.