Riding on the shining success of \u2018Premalu\u2019, actor Mamitha Baiju is making confident strides into the South Indian film industry. Her latest Tamil film, \u2018Dude\u2019, in which she stars opposite Pradeep Ranganathan \u2014 the new sensation in Tamil cinema \u2014 is enjoying a successful theatrical run, earning warm reviews and a strong audience response. <\/p>\n
With the film\u2019s success, the Pradeep\u2013Mamitha on-screen pairing has already gained a growing fan base. Speaking to Manorama Online, Mamitha shares her excitement about the film\u2019s journey and her experience working on it.<\/p>\n
\u2018Dude came to me because of Super Sharanya\u2019
\u201cIt was after watching \u2018Super Sharanya\u2019 that director Keerthiswaran Sir called me for \u2018Dude\u2019,\u201d says Mamitha. \u201cHe offered me a character that carries weight throughout the film. Even though I\u2019m a Malayali, he showed immense faith in me by entrusting a role rooted in Tamil culture. That belief meant a lot to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
She adds, \u201cI had previously acted in the Tamil film \u2018Rebel\u2019, but my screen space there was quite limited. So, when I got a chance to play such a strong and central character in \u2018Dude\u2019, I felt a huge sense of responsibility to perform beautifully. I approached the role with a lot of expectations. For me, \u2018Dude\u2019 is a very special film.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Mamitha\u2013Pradeep chemistry
\u201cWe first met at Keerthiswaran Sir\u2019s office during the script reading and photoshoot. Pradeep Sir has this habit of making fellow artists comfortable, so I never felt nervous. From the very beginning, we shared a friendly vibe, and that helped make everything easy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018\u20b915 crore? And that too for me? You\u2019ve got to be kidding!\u2019
\u201cThere were reports circulating on social media claiming that I received \u20b915 crore as my salary for the movie. I\u2019m not active on social media, but someone sent me a link, and I was honestly shocked to see the comments! People seemed to believe it completely. Some even wrote things like, \u2018Has she really become that big to demand \u20b915 crore?\u2019 People should understand that not everything they see on social media is true.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018My dream was to become a doctor\u2019
\u201cMy childhood dream was to become a doctor like my father. When I used to visit his clinic, everyone there called me \u2018baby doctor\u2019. They believed that since my father was a doctor, I would follow in his footsteps. I used to feel so happy seeing people come back after being cured of their diseases, thanking him with so much affection. I\u2019ve always had huge respect for that profession.<\/p>\n
\u201cCinema came into my life purely by accident. When I was in Class 9, I got a chance to act in the movie \u2018Sarvopari Palakkaran\u2019. It was produced by Aji Uncle, a close friend of my father. He suggested I attend the audition, and that\u2019s how it all began.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter acting in that movie, I started getting small roles in different films. Gradually, I began to enjoy acting and developed a connection with cinema. I realised that this was something I could never get tired of doing. That\u2019s when I told my parents that acting was my chosen path. They set aside their dreams for me and gave their full support to help me make it my profession.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fame that came unexpectedly
\u201cSometimes, when something happens in my life, I sit and wonder, \u2018Oh my God, is this really happening?\u2019 When \u2018Premalu\u2019 was released, it became a massive hit not just in Kerala, but also in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Suddenly, everyone began recognising us. When we reached Hyderabad, people came up to take photos with me.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first, I couldn\u2019t even process what was happening or how to handle that kind of fame. But once the initial surprise faded, I began to see it differently. I realised that when people show you such love, it also becomes your responsibility. It\u2019s my duty to choose good stories and meaningful characters. Now, every time a movie comes my way, I read and learn the script with sincerity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Can never forget the \u2018Premalu\u2019 team
\u201c\u2018Premalu\u2019 was the turning point in my life. I share a special bond with everyone from the team \u2014 be it Naslen, Mathew, Sangeeth Ettan or Akhila Chechi. Each of them is now busy, walking their own path, but our friendship still remains strong. Among them, I meet Sangeeth Ettan and Akhila Chechi the most. Sangeeth Ettan calls me often, and I call him just as much. And yes, I\u2019m eagerly waiting for \u2018Premalu 2\u2019! The rumours that the project has been shelved aren\u2019t true.\u201d<\/p>\n
Working with Vijay, Suriya and Dhanush
\u201cActing with Vijay Sir felt like a dream come true. On my very first day on set, I was both nervous and thrilled as I couldn\u2019t believe I was actually standing next to him! But he came up to me, spoke, and made me feel completely at ease. From that moment, I felt like one among them.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was supposed to act with Suriya Sir in a film titled \u2018Vanangaan\u2019, but it didn\u2019t materialise for certain reasons. Later, when I finally got a chance to work with him, Suriya Sir told me, \u2018Finally, we\u2019re acting together!\u2019 \u201cDhanush Sir has helped me a lot during our shoots. Once, I even forgot my dialogue because I was so awestruck by his performance! Working with such an incredible actor was truly a joy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Riding on the shining success of \u2018Premalu\u2019, actor Mamitha Baiju is making confident strides into the South Indian…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":94981,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[59818,59813,59816,321,922,59810,93,61,51836,60,11870,56613,59815,59814,56610,59811,59812,11555,59817],"class_list":["post-94980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-actress-career-journey","tag-actress-interview","tag-best-south-indian-actresses","tag-celebrities","tag-celebrity-news","tag-dude-tamil-movie","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-indian-film-industry","tag-ireland","tag-malayalam-actress","tag-mamitha-baiju","tag-mamitha-baiju-movies","tag-movie-review-dude","tag-pradeep-ranganathan","tag-premalu-movie","tag-south-indian-actress","tag-tamil-cinema","tag-upcoming-south-indian-movies"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94980\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/94981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}