Amala Paul on Thiruttu Payale 2, working with Arvind Swami and her dislike for social media

From being an unassuming, naïve girl who played the title role in Mynaa in 2010 to shuttling between all four south film industries now, Amala Paul has indeed come a long way. Speaking about her incredible journey in this exclusive chat with Firstpost, she explains, “I was so young and dumb when I did Mynaa. I have learnt a lot over the course of this journey because I come from a family which has no connections in the showbiz industry. I can’t look up to my family since they don’t have that exposure. I have always been a fighter. When someone says I can’t do something, I want to prove them wrong. After all the hardships, learning, travel and reading, I have now become a calmer person with no greed or insecurity. Two years ago, it was not the same.”

Amala Paul was recently in the headlines for the sensational posters of her latest project Thiruttu Payale 2, where she can be seen showing off her navel sensuously. “When director Susi Ganesan sent me the first look on WhatsApp, I actually liked it and felt it was poetic rather than sensuous. But the startling buzz it created was quite strange, and I started to receive a lot of responses. There is a specific reason for the way the poster looks, which you will discover after watching the film. Thiruttu Payale 2 has a great story, an unconventional cast and a great director who was also a teacher. I couldn’t have asked for more,” said Amala who is upbeat about the film’s release today. The movie also stars Prasanna and Bobby Simha in significant roles.

Amala Paul, who has faced a whirlwind of challenges in her personal life in the last two years, says the industry and audience have always treated her with respect. “I believe that my professional life and personal life have no connection, and the industry also works in this way. Today’s audience doesn’t watch my films for what I am in my private life. Rather, they watch my films for my performance. As long as you work, have passion and look good – you will always get films,” she says.

Amala calls 2017, the year where she was part of eight films under various stages of production, as the best of her career. “This year has been the craziest and most productive. After all the strenuous work, I’m waiting to watch my effort bear fruit. Now I think I should take it slow. I’m listening to scripts, and I’m a little picky about my next film. When it comes to roles, I’m very greedy. I don’t want to be stereotyped. When I look back, I can name only a few films where I performed different roles. I want to try as many different roles as possible,” she explains.

Among her slew of upcoming films is Baskar Oru Rascal, an official Tamil remake of the Malayalam film Bascar The Rascal. Amala Paul will take on the role played by Nayanthara in the original, and she is paired opposite Arvind Swami in the film. “Arvind Swami is an actor who has an amazing life outside of cinema. We always had so much to talk about when we met on the sets. We have shared interests in travel and adventure. He’s a wonderful soul and a great human to look up to,” said Amala. In this film, directed by Siddique who also helmed the original, she will star opposite Arvind for the first time.

Amala Paul was supposed to play a pivotal character in Dhanush’s gangster drama Vada Chennai, but she had to opt out of the project because of date issues. “To work in Vetrimaaran sir’s film is a dream. But I couldn’t take up the project due to prior commitments. Vetri sir has promised that he will definitely do a film with me in future,” she said.

Although Amala’s social media accounts are filled with philosophical messages from her travel diaries, she is not a fan of these platforms. “I would call myself a social media-phobic person. If not for this profession, I wouldn’t have tried social media. But now I have no choice but to connect with my fans. I think I can spread positivity through my Instagram account. Twitter has become messy with all the ongoing arguments and debates. So I’m not very active on Twitter," she says.

Her upcoming projects include Vishnu Vishal’s investigative thriller Ratchasan, where she plays the role of a school teacher, and the women-centric Adho Andha Paravai Pola, a film set against the backdrop of a forest where will play the lead role.