This story is from August 4, 2015

Mammukka beat me with a ‘muringakol’

Jewel Mary is the heroine in Utopyayile Rajavu
Mammukka beat me with a ‘muringakol’
She’s just wrapped up her second consecutive film with none other than Mammootty and for a debutante whose movies are yet to hit screens, Jewel Mary has a lot to look forward to.
The popular TV host-turned-actress shares with Kochi Times the memories of shooting her movie Utopyayile Rajavu with director Kamal and Mammootty, mouthing some tough dialogues that literally made her count stars, staging protest before the Secretariat during the film and more:
You recently shared the picture of a particular shot with Mammootty from Utopyayile Rajavu on your online page, mentioning how tough it was to get it right…
(Laughter and a sigh of relief) Oh yes! That scene was a real ordeal for what I had to present was a lengthy, semi-serious and a slightly complicated dialogue to the group involving Mammukka, and other established actors with him like Nedumudi Venu, Kulluoor Mash, Sreekumar, et all.
Though they were on the other side of the camera, they had bountiful expressions on their faces. The mere presence of all these veterans gave me jitters and I guess while taking this particular scene, watching their reactions and expressions as I speak, I was forgetting my dialogue or getting its modulation wrong. It went for many takes and Mammukka even took a short muringakkol (drumstick) from among the bunch of vegetables used for the scene and caned me in jest and said, ‘If you don’t get it right next time, I will go and get another heroine.’ Somehow I managed to finally get it right.
At the end of the day, I went to our director Kamal sir and said sorry for troubling everyone. And I followed it up with the famous dialogue from his film, Azhagiya Raavanan, ‘Njan Thonnakkal Panchayathile Oro Ariyum Perukkiyeduthu.’ In fact, the multiple retakes I took were quite reminiscent of the hilarious shooting sequences portrayed in the above film.
However, Mammukka consoled me saying that I should not worry so much about retakes. ‘You can see that it happens with everyone and is normal,’ he told me. But my thoughts were naturally straying towards ‘I’m troubling them all’.

You shot extensively in Secretariat at Trivandrum and the nearby locations…
Yes, most of the film’s second half was shot in Trivandrum and it involved scenes of us staging protests, that too amid the jalapeeranki (water cannon) and lathi charge. Those scenes were very physically demanding too. After I wrapped them up, I came home and caught up with my friends who are mildly active in politics. I bragged, ‘The experience I got is the one you guys have not even after being active in politics.’
Things like lying inside a samarapanthal (tent for protesters) in front of the Secretariat, for me, was like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. That too in front of the real Secretariat!
Learning that Mammukka is also part of the scene, the main road before it often got blocked with the crowd.
Your characters in the debut film Pathemari and the second film Utopyayile Rajavu seem to be poles apart. How challenging were each?
First of all, there is a huge gap of timeline between both these characters. Nalini, the character in Pathemari is a woman who lived in 1980s, and her situations, talks, places, nature etc are quite different. She was one of those women who would keep everything to herself and conduct as another ordinary housewife. She is delicate too. But Uma in this film is an extrovert and epitome of new age ladies.
There is a little bit of me in both the characters. I am not as extrovert as Uma, and have my own conservations, but not as quiet as Nalini too. It’s often said that director Kamal exudes the kind of energy that spreads to the whole set, what about you?
Working with him, one would feel that ‘Kamal sir is the secret of my energy.’ He would act out all scenes, run around the set, and from morning till pack up, there wouldn’t be a moment without his voice echoing around.
What is it that strike you upon doing two consecutive films with an actor of Mammootty’s stature?
There is a magic beyond description in Mammukka’s acting. After you see him acting live standing close to you and then check out the same scene on the monitor, you would see that it gets amplified ten times on the screen. I have walked up to him and asked ‘How do you do that?’ He told me not to keep a convoluted face while acting. ‘Keep in your mind what you are doing, and just respond to that thought. That is what acting is, in reality. That statement was a real lesson and eye-opener for me. I am not someone who knows any theory or attended any classes of acting. But through this simple one liner, he changed my whole perspective about acting.
This is your first Onam after wedding. What plans?
We don’t really have much time for elaborate trips, but my husband Jinson and I make sure that the little time we get together are adipoli. We would be visiting our families and spending time with them. As of now, our plans are limited to just that.
The one thing that keeps you fit and glowing?
I have started doing yoga for a holistic well-being. I have been someone who starts off such things but leave them halfway through, as the schedule of our job is not regular. However, I hope I stick to the regime,this time.
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