Actor Arya
| Photo Credit: RK Nithin
The Malayalam film Ananthan Kaadu holds a special place in actor Arya’s career. This will be his first full-length, lead role in a Malayalam film, 20-odd years after his Tamil debut. He explains, “For the films I was part of earlier, I would be on shorter schedules of five to eight days . My commitment then was with Tamil films because I was doing those primarily, and Malayalam films were something I did occasionally.” Arya, who began his career in the Tamil film Arinthum Ariyamalum (2005), has acted in Malayalam films such as Urumi, Double Barrel, The Great Father, and Pathinettam Padi. Though none of these roles was full-length, he is a familiar face with the Malayali audience for these and his Tamil films. He has also produced Malayalam films and web series. Bilingual advantageAnanthan Kaadu, written by Murali Gopy and directed by Jiyen Krishnakumar, is set in Thiruvananthapuram. One of the attractions, Arya confesses, was that the character has Tamil connections: “This is a Tamil guy, living in the city. It was a ‘natural fit’ for me. He speaks Tamil, like me, so there was no issue of me dubbing because I know the language. Anyways, the audience identifies me as a Tamil actor.” The film is bilingual; it will be released in Tamil as well and will be dubbed in other languages.
