Madurai is known for its film frenzy and adulation of movie stars that often borders on craziness. Actress Trisha was in town for the launch of a short film recently and the cinema-crazy side of the city came alive yet again. Hours before the start of the event super-excited men and women made a beeline to the screen at Inox multiplex, occupying the best seats in order to get a glimpse of the matinee idol. Till the star arrived, the crowd remained restless and emotions ran high as anchor Ramya from Chennai too chipped in to keep the momentum alive. Finally she strutted in with elan, flanked by bar bouncers and peoples’ enthusiasm hit a new high.
As she stepped on to the stage to light the kuthuvilakku, fans jostled to get nearer to the stage while photographers elbowed each other out to get a better picture of Trisha. “Big actors coming to Madurai is rare. For small town fans like us, this kind of an event is a big opportunity to see our favourite actors,” says T. Elangovan, a die-hard fan of Trisha. “The first time I saw the actress was during the shooting of ‘Saamy’. She was shooting for the song ‘ Kalyanam thaan kattikittu odi polama …’ near Alwarkurichi. I was in college and we cut classes to get a glimpse of Trisha,” he recalls.
“In 2007, I saw Trisha when she was in the Tirumalai Nayakkar Mahal, shooting for the film Bheema. She still looks the same and I really like her style ,” says S. Dharshini, a college goer. Truly, Trisha turned up elegantly in casual denims and a tunic top and took the audience storm. “I have been following her trendy style of dressing from the time she won Miss Chennai 99. I used to go to theatres just to watch the Fair and Lovely and Pepsi ads starring her.”
“During the time when the film Adukalam was shot in Madurai, there were rumours that Trisha was shooting in Tiruparankundram. I missed her then and that’s why I came much earlier to this event today,” says Elangovan. “Apart from her looks, Trisha also comes across as a frank person. That’s the reason I like her and also because she is an animal lover and advocates for stray dogs.”
Even as fans heaped praises on her, Trisha launched the short films made by Meenakshi Mission Hospital on ‘equality in medical access and quality of treatment’, as part of their ‘Aram Seiydhu Pazhagu’ campaign. Dr. S. Gurushankar, Chairman of the hospital elaborated on the treatments given to patients free of cost. Later, interacting with the patients who are beneficiaries of various schemes, Trisha termed the event as ‘touching.’ “As an actor, I keep going to a lot of events, but this one made me teary-eyed. The stories of the patients were inspiring and I feel honoured to have met the people of Madurai.”
