Malavika Mohanan talks about Sardar 2 and life between film sets

Malavika Mohanan is a self-confessed sneakerhead. We refrain from embarrassing her by not asking how many pairs she owns. “I eventually had to stop buying shoes because my mom was like there is no space anymore,” laughs Malavika, who, fittingly, inaugurated the New Balance store at Express Avenue in Chennai.

When she is not working, and is not dressed for a role, she lives in sneakers. “Because I am jumping from one airport to the other, or travelling. I love exploring, and it involves a lot of walking. I go on a lot of wildlife safaris.”

While she juggles different things in her personal life, Malavika prefers not to do the same when it comes to films. However, while shooting for the soon-to-be-released Sardar 2 with Karthi, the actress was also working on Hridayapoorvam (with Mohanlal) and The Raja Saab (opposite Prabhas). “In a utopian world, I would have preferred being committed to one project and being in that zone. But we don’t live in an ideal world,” she laughs, adding, “Timelines kept shifting. Date clashes happened.”

Malavika Mohanan sporting her favourite New Balance 9060
| Photo Credit:
Johan Sathyadas

All three roles she played were in different languages and completely diverse genres — a period spy film; a heart warming drama; and a horror comedy. While this fortunately did not affect the characters she played, Malavika says it did result in sleepless nights as she travelled from one shoot to another. “It got really tricky on a lot of days.” Sometimes, she would land up at one set and start speaking in Tamil, when she had to speak in Telugu. Well, you live, you learn.

In Sardar 2, Malavika plays a role she considers unique to everything else she has portrayed before. “In this exciting spy thriller, I had to do challenging action sequences. I went through a lot of technical training.” She narrates how she had to climb 200 metres by stairs, and jump from there. Even though she had the safety of the harness, the challenge was to get the body language right, maintain a tight core and stretch hands forward at a certain angle. “Nerve wracking in the moment, but an adrenaline rush later.”

Known for her versatility and choice of roles, her wish list includes romantic films and a period drama — where she gets to dress like a princess. Next, Malavika is gearing up for a Tamil film. Details, of course, are still under wraps.

After 12 years in the industry, how does Malavika decide between commercial appeal and creative satisfaction when choosing roles? “It’s a fine balance between the two. I want to reach as many audiences as I can. You never know what can reach who, and it’s important to dabble in all sorts of cinema and just have fun with it.”

Malavika Mohanan inaugurates the New Balance store in Express Avenue, Chennai
| Photo Credit:
Johan Sathyadas