A dream come true ”˜Beyond the Clouds’ for actress Malavika Mohanan
By Neeru Saluja
It was a dream come true for the Malayali actress Malavika Mohanan when she was offered the lead role in Majid Majidi’s film ”˜Beyond the Clouds’. She never even imagined the acclaimed director on whom she wrote an essay about while studying cinema would cast her in his first Indian film.
Actress Malavika makes her Hindi debut as she plays the lead character ”˜Meera’, the sister of Amir played by Ishaan Khatter. “Meera is a strong character and the film is about herself, her younger brother and their journey. The character was the main reason why I was drawn towards this film. It’s a love story, about the love between a brother and sister and their beautiful relationship,” tells Malavika.
Not only was Malavika cast by Majid, she also reportedly replaced actress Deepika Padukone in the film. “As an actor, you always wanted to work with good directors and talented co-actors. And with Majid Majidi as the director and music by AR Rahman, it was a no brainer to be chosen for this film. It does feel very surreal to act in the Iranian director’s film that I studied about,” says the actress.
But does she feel that she will be stereotyped in the role of a sister at the start of her career? “No, not really. I love to do all kinds of films. As an actor you want play all types of characters. People are now making films beyond romantic films. I want to explore all kind of stories.
With a world premiere at the London Film Festival, ”˜Beyond the Clouds’ is filling the appetite for Indian independent cinema. “This film has got all the ingredients a film should have ”“ it’s got love, dance and music. It’s a film of it’s own kind. We have to make films on love, hope and relationships which are a universal theme. I’m really hoping that people enjoy the film all over the globe. Despite the language, Majid Majidi’s films always carry a universal language. I really hope Australia likes the film,” states Malavika.
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