Dance or films, learning is constant

Vineeth Radhakrishnan recalls with gratitude all his mentors who generously and graciously perfected him into the kind of actor and dancer that he is today. Thalassery, where Vineeth was born, boasted of the presence of the reigning queen of the  silver screen, Padmini (who was his valiamma,  father's brother's wife). Vineeth recalls his childhood days spent with her where she narrated many tales, and answered every query of his patiently.

Like many children of his age, his fascination for films was restricted to watching good films only. It was Providence that provided him with the first opportunity when his dance guru Kalamandalam Saraswathy suggested Vineeth's name to her famous writer husband, M T Vasudevan Nair. At that time, Nair was looking for someone to fit the role that he had in mind. Now, that was an era when very few newcomers were introduced as actors in lead roles. So, Vineeth regards this as a godsend opportunity that came his way.

But Vineeth was still in high school and his parents insisted that he concentrate on his academics first. But he was allowed to participate in extra-curricular activities such as dance during his vacation time.  It was, therefore, by sheer destiny that he was offered a role by his guru and her husband, the celebrated MT!

In 1984, MT introduced Vineeth to Bharatan for the role of Rishishrugan for a movie by the same name.  Vineeth  was overwhelmed by the generosity and commitment of Bharatan. He says, "I was a mere lad of 15 then. Yet, the entire script was narrated to me just so that I could have a good understanding of the storyline."

Vineeth got selected at the audition, but the film was only released much later, and its name was changed to Vaishali. Though Vineeth was approached once again, he was unable to take the offer as his pre-degree exams were underway. Soon enough though, he had another major opportunity to work in a movie called Idanilangal, written by Vasudevan  and directed by I V Sasi. Vineeth recalls the joy, apprehension and awe at the prospect of interacting with veteran actors and directors in this film.  

It was the movie Nakhakshathangal, directed by Hariharan and penned by Vasudevan, where his acting skills received great appreciation. Vineeth very simply says that the subtleties of emoting and body language were some things taught by the director Hariharan in this movie. "Every recognition of my acting is actually the recognition of my mentors. I had no prior training in acting and had no understanding of the technicalities of cinema and yet I was fortunate to be mentored by some of the finest giants in the industry," Vineeth says. He relives an incident when Hariharan taught him how to emote anger: "Bend your head. Look down, and without raising your head, slowly move your eyeballs."

He worked in eight films with Hariharan. Vineeth feels that he was just like clay waiting to be shaped by the best craftsmen. "I also had to memorise my dialogues completely because I would be trained to modulate only if I had my dialogues ready," he reveals. With Vasudevan, one could never improvise as his style of writing did not provide scope for that. He says, "The characters came alive in the dialogues penned by him, and the actors were energised with the vibe transmitted by the directors."

Soon, Oridathu, a film directed by Aravindan, followed. Each of the films he acted in also taught him to empathise with the world outside his own. Aavarampoo, Sargam, Daivathinte Vikrithikal, Jaathi Malli and Pudhiya Mugam won him great acclaim. Other directors like Lenin, Bhadran, Joshiy, Kamal, Fazil, Priyadarshan, Sibi Malayil and Pratap Pothen continued to shape and mould him.

Vineeth speaks with fondness and awe of his senior colleagues whose acting inspired him and continue to inspire him. Especially Mohan Lal, from whom he learnt professionalism, commitment, punctuality, body language, and "his ability to just act when the camera rolled."

Vineeth, though known for his work primarily in Malayalam films, has also had the opportunity to work in other South Indian languages. He worked with several greats - K Balachander, Shankar, Kranthi Kumar, Ravi Raja Pinisetty, T Vasu, Nassar, Vamshi, Arjun and so on. He recalls an interesting incident during the shooting of the Tamil period film Uliyin Osai (penned by Karunanidhi), where he was cast in the lead role. Imagine his shock when a sudden convoy with the then CM came to the sets to observe the shooting. Vineeth nervously walked to the CM to seek his blessings and said: "It is an honour and a blessing to speak your lines in your presence. If there are any mistakes in pronunciation, kindly pardon me." Karunanidhi, tapping his shoulder, told him: "Adhelaam, nama dubbingla paathukalaam  (We'll take care of those things while dubbing)!"  

"It was incidents such as these that always encouraged me to take little steps and move steadily, always willing to learn from every opportunity that came my way," says Vineeth. And he expresses joy on the fact that he's working with Rajiv
Menon on his latest film.

Vineeth acknowledges that it was his training in classical dance that gave him a sense of aesthetics. And though he is a full-time actor, he makes a fine balance between his two loves - natyam and acting.