Inside the tent
OTS (Over the shoulder) shot of Babu holding a mirror. In the mirror, Kamala is smiling. He starts crooning, “Enthu bangi ninne kaanan…”
CUT TO
Ext. Day
In the backdrop of the circus tent
Kamala dressed in traditional chaniya choli steps into the frame in slow motion (48 fps)
CUT TO
Ext. Day
An alleyway in New York City (21 years later)
Manya Naidu decked up in formal attire rushing to her office.
FADE OUT
THE END (of the screenplay mode!)
Well, you might be wondering what this is all about. If yesteryear actor Manya Naidu’s life is displayed in a couple of scenes, this would be the easiest way to portray it. The ‘Joker’ heroine is now in New York City, the city of dreams, with her family, finding the right balance between personal and professional life.
Manya Naidu’s regular day in the metropolitan city begins at 5 in the morning. The actress wakes up by 5, practices yoga for half an hour, and following that she spends some time praying and later she ‘walks’ to work. And Manya’s ‘walks’ means power walking. It takes approximately half an hour for a person walking at a normal pace to reach the office, but Manya seems to be giving a tough competition to Flash (DC Comics) and Quicksilver (Marvel Comics), as she reaches her office in 10-15 minutes!
The diva who once was the crush for many youngsters in South India is now leading a happy life with her family and enjoying every bit of the fast-paced life in NYC.
In an exclusive conversation with ETimes, yesteryear actress Manya Naidu gets unfiltered and unguarded about her entry into showbiz, winning the hearts of South Indian movie buff, including Keralites, and then leaving everything behind and returning to the US to pursue academics, and later making a home and career in the NYC.
“I never thought I would become an actor. I rather believed that I would be a dancer or a Mathematics teacher,” says Manya Naidu, who has over 40 films to her credit in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada.
A fairytale childhood
Manya was born in Hyderabad to an upper-middle-class household. Her dad was a cardiologist and her mom a homemaker. As her father received a job in London the family relocated to the city and Manya completed her primary education there. And that’s when her dad decided to move back to India so that he could set up a hospital and practice.
Fate playing its dirty games
Life was moving at a beautiful pace and that’s when fate decided to play its dirty games. “Everything was going great, but unfortunately, one day dad had a heart attack. It took some time for the ambulance to arrive and he didn’t make it to the hospital. I was a teenager and still in school. Even today, recalling that day, hurts. I saw him in the morning and in the evening, when I returned home from school, he was gone. Being the elder child, I was very much attached to my dad. His demise shattered me completely,” shares Manya Naidu with a heavy heart. The unfortunate demise of Manya’s dad upended their lives. Manya, her younger sister, and their mom were struggling to process the demise of their beloved one.
“We were grieving his loss for a long while, and everything that happened felt so ‘unreal’. My mom was married at the age of 17 and dad was the only person she has been close to after her parents. She was still grieving and days went by. Dad was the only earning member in our family and that’s when reality struck. Mom was helpless. She was raised in a society where she completed high school, stayed at home for a few years, and then at 17 married off. Mom never had to step out to work or earn and she even hardly knew where dad’s bank accounts were. She was in trauma and I witnessed her helplessness,” she added.
Choosing destiny over the fate
And that’s when Manya decided to step up and shoulder the responsibilities of her family. Manya was studious and was the topper of the class. But the circumstances forced her to drop out of school. “I hate to say this, but India is a very male-dominated society and if you don’t have a man in the house, people try to take advantage. And that’s when I swore to face life and take things into my own hands. I am born Hindu, but I believe in spirituality rather than religion. I respect all religions. And I feel God already had plans for me. Because prior to my dad’s demise I got this opportunity to model for a popular textile brand, which was owned by one of our family friends. It was summer vacation and so I accepted the offer for fun. But while doing that I had little knowledge that it would help me to earn the bread and butter for my family in the future,” the diva shares.
“The photo shoot came out well and Telugu director YVS Chowdary happened to see them. He was working on his multi starrer film, which had Nandamuri Harikrishna, Nagarjuna Akkineni, and Ravi Teja. And he was looking for a pair for Ravi Teja. They approached me for the same, but I denied the offer as I had no experience with acting. I was so young, nearly 14, and wasn’t sure if I could act. But as I said earlier, God lays some stones in our path and we realize it only later. When I denied the offer, I didn’t realize that it was the ‘calling’. And after a while, dad passed away, and then the team approached me again. So I decided to take the opportunity and support my family. That’s how I landed in ‘Seetharama Raju’. I dropped out of school. Even before the release, I got another Telugu film ‘English Pellam East Godavari Mogudu’. And then one followed another,” relayed the actress.
Venturing into Malayalam cinema
The year was 1999. Blessy and Venugopal (cinematographer) were in search of an actress for AK Lohitadas’ ‘Joker’. Their character Kamala was born to a North Indian mother and a South Indian father and so they were looking for someone who had a mix of both features. “My film ‘Seetharama Raju’ had released by then and it was a hit. A journalist suggested my name to the ‘Joker’ team,” Manya recalled.
She went on to add, “Blessy chettan and Venugopal sir came to meet me. I remember putting on make-up as it was a must in Telugu cinema. I was naive and had no idea about Malayalam cinema. So, we had a chat over a cup of tea. They requested me to remove makeup so that they could take a couple of pictures. I was surprised but agreed. My only criteria for selecting movies those days were how the interaction between me and the filmmakers goes. And I felt these two were so genuine and interesting. So a couple of days later they informed me that I got the part!”
Into the world of Lohitadas magic
Manya Naidu swears that she would never have been able to understand the dynamics of art or acting if she hadn’t met AK Lohitadas. “It has been 21 years, but the memories of meeting Lohi sir are still fresh. I was in awe, the first time I met him. He was this quiet and peaceful person. And I adore the way he crafted the characters and story, there is a lot of depth in it. From teaching me how to react to a particular emotion to suggesting where I should pause while delivering dialogues, Lohi sir guided me throughout. Blessy sir acted as a translator between us. He was the one who taught me dialogues. It was one of the best experiences of my life as an actor. I am immensely grateful to Lohi sir, Venugopal sir, and Blessy chettan for coming that day in 1999 to see me and cast in the film. I learned acting from Malayalam cinema. Working in ‘Joker’ made me a better actor,” Manya reminisces, taking a stroll down the memory lane.
Delightful Dileep
Manya Naidu has worked with Dileep in three movies – ‘Joker’, ‘Kunjikoonan’ and ‘Rakshasa Rajavu’. The actress shares that she had a professional relationship with him, where both of them cared for each other, “Dileep is a very jovial person. He used to crack jokes on the set. My mom’s name is Padmini and he would call her Padhu! Everybody on the set was treated equally by our team, we used to have food together, hang out together during the off days. It was a fun team to work with.”
Co-stars like family
“Working in Malayalam cinema is something I would cherish forever. They treat you like family. Shooting with Jayaramettan (Jayaram) was so much fun. Sureshettan (Suresh Gopi) is a great human being. He has invited me to his house for lunch and I met Radhika chechi and the kids. All of them are very close to their family and treat you like one and that has attracted me the most. Mammukka (Mammoootty) is such a gentleman. I remember meeting him on the sets of ‘Rakshasa Rajavu’ and staring at him for so long. He was so handsome, and was glowing more than what we see on screen! I also made a friend during my journey, Samyuktha Varma. She has been with me through thick and thin,” Manya opened up.
Quitting cinema for pursuing the academic path
Manya Naidu was a popular star across South Indian cinema during the 2000s, but what makes her unique is that even when she was on top of the game, she chose to quit showbiz and rejoined the academic path, which she had to discontinue once for survival. “Although I had no plans of becoming an actor, working in ‘Joker’ changed my perception. It made me passionate about cinema. Quitting showbiz wasn’t an easy decision to make as I had a promising career and financial stability. And it took me over eight years to build it. But deep inside my heart, I was still that little girl who dropped out of school to support my family and wanted to pursue a career in Mathematics,” she shared.
Leaving everything behind, Manya jetted off to New York. “I left all my possessions to my family, as my sister was young and mom was raising her alone. I came to this city with nothing. I used to take subways and had a scholarship at college. Those four years at Columbia University doing graduation in Mathematics and Statistics were the best years of my life. I felt complete, satisfied, and more importantly happy,” Manya said with contentment.
The buzzing New York City and family
It was during her college years Manya met her husband Vikas Bajpai. The couple has a daughter Omshika and Manya’s mom also stays with them.
Manya Naidu works as an auditor for an international bank and the diva shares that she is loving every part of metropolitan life, “New York is very different from the other parts in the US. Life is fast-paced here. I used to work in investment banking before Omi was born. After her birth, I moved to audit as it offered a better lifestyle for me so that I could manage both personal and professional life flawlessly. But the same job of audit demands more hours and more competition and it’s more cutting edge in NYC than any other state in the US. I love this city for its vibrance and its charm. It’s indisputably the ‘City of Dreams’!”
Second innings
The actress divulges that she received a couple of offers during the pandemic. “It was difficult for me to travel in such an unsafe time, but if something interesting happens, I am definitely in!” Manya Naidu sums up.
Source: TOI
