People think I’m of Arab origin: Pearle Maaney

Who can forget the dashing woman bike rider in Neelakasham Pacha Kadal Chuvanna Bhoomi? Like her character in the film, Pearle Maaney is bold and full-of-life in real life as well. The actress with Arab looks and thick, curly locks, played an adventurous girl in her latest film, The Last Supper, as well.
Excerpts from a chat:
Adventurous in M-Town
It was fun shooting for The Last Supper.I remember being in a 200-year-old church in Nelliyampathy. We could not reach the location on vehicle and had to walk quite a bit. The local people also warned us that the area is often frequented by wild elephants. The church was quite small and faces east. I wondered who made it in that corner of the world, that too centuries ago. It had a few openings through which sunlight beautifully filtered in. The rays also travelled through a cross inside the church, giving it a divine ambience. Immersed in the divine feel, I spent some quality time there.
As far as the film is concerned, it had a new concept. Not many people would appreciate biryani the first time they taste it, right? Moreover, when you have access to international films with similar adventurous settings and made on a bigger scale, viewers naturally tend to compare both.
Debuting as a playback singer
I crooned a song with an Arabic feel and beats and enjoyed the process. It is for a 30 second sequence in the film that I tried belly dance in the company of friends, inside a forest. The film does not have the song in its entirety. Composer Gopi Sunder sent me a version of this song, which he had recorded with his friends. They wanted a female voice for the track and asked me to try it. I just did it for fun. Arabic songs are generally heard in male voice, and women are seen dancing to them. This was a different experiment.
I have no formal training in music. Though my parents enrolled me for classical music class when I was in Class III, I was too naughty and would even climb windows in between classes. My trainer gave up saying I lacked respect for the guru (laughs). However, I used to sing while in college and used to listen to Arabic music for fun.
Confused identity
Nobody else in my family has such curly locks, though my dad says his great grandmother had similar hair. When I went to Dubai recently with family, they thought I am an Arab! I guess my hair and kohl-eye makeup did the trick! At the airport, they questioned me a lot to confirm my identity and kept quizzing my dad about where I was born and where I am from.
My dad is a Tamilian and mom, a Malayali. While I completed my schooling in Kerala, I graduated in media studies from Bangalore, before joining the Malayalam television. I am fluent in Tamil and Malayalam. My surname, Maaney, is another version of the Christian name Immanuel.
The biker girl
I coaxed my guy friends to teach me to ride a bike and learnt it on their two-wheelers. Gradually, I began giving rides to other girls. Later, I started getting invites to join bike riders and that’s how I tamed the mean machine. Recently, I also took part in a car racing event — Rajah Island rally sprint. The 1300cc ladies class was the first ever motor cross event happening on an island in the world and I bagged third place in it. Such events are safe, as they give you all safety gears.
Dance, dreams…
If there is one thing that I really love to do, that is dance! I have no formal training, but am self-trained! I can only do the kind of moves I do and I dance like it’s nobody’s business.
When it comes to acting, I take up only roles that excite me. My dream is to be a motivational speaker. You have people to do everything else but very few motivators, who can give you the true push. At a time when comparisons are inevitable right from your student days, I believe it is an important discipline. My dad was a motivational speaker too and has worked with international organisations as well. I am aware that it is not a field where you can reap money, just like many creative pursuits, but I am ready to take the risk.