Visually challenged girl to star in Murugadoss film

Tinsel town beckons

Life has changed overnight for 19-year-old City girl Nandini, a visually challenged student, after she was told that she would star in a movie produced by a Chennai-based company.

“Initially, a production house members told me that it was only an acting workshop, since we had evinced some interest in drama. However, after about five to 10 sessions, they informed me that I was selected as a second lead in a major movie whose filming would begin in early August,” Nandini said.

Nandini is the daughter of Kodandarama, a farmer, and Rathnamma, a homemaker. She has been partially blind since her birth and had been brought up along with her elder brother Naveen Kumar at Konapalli village in Chintamani taluk. Nandini completed her early education in her native village. However, after her matriculation, her parents admitted her to Samarthanam, a trust for the disabled in Bangalore.

“Though we all along knew our daughter was multi-talented, we were worried that she may be neglected and may have to face constant criticism that might hurt her morale to excel in life. Hence, we decided to make arrangements for her hostel at Samarthanam,” Kodandarama said.

She is currently pursing her degree in Arts at St Joseph’s College, Bangalore.

“She is a student of distinction, though she was very shy-natured when she first came to us. But soon, she involved herself in various extra-curricular activities. We, along with her parents, supported her every endeavour and we trust she will excel and be a role model to many like her who have certain disability,” Vasanthi, the trustee of Samarthanam, said. 

While the main star cast of the movie is yet to be finalised, Nandini had been told by producer A R Murugadoss that she will be the second lead in the film. Nandini, whose mother tongue is Kannada, will also undergo a five-day workshop in Chennai in mid-June, where she will be trained by a team to hone her skills in Tamil language.