Health

Forbes India 30 Under 30 Aparna Balamurali: Fierce And Fabulous | Forbes India

February 17, 2025
CyberSec Bulletin



Actor Aparna Balamurali,
Image: Arun Chandrabose For Forbes India; Photo Imaging: Kapil Kashyap

In the 10 years of her career as an actor, Aparna Balamurali has done some 30 films, and has a National Award to her credit. She had started acting serendipitously, but now wants to make the most of opportunities.  

In 2024, she had significant roles in two well-received dramas and thriller projects, Tamil film Raayan and Malayalam film Kishkindha Kaandam. The next film she has announced is also a thriller directed by Jeethu Joseph (of Drishyam fame). In the future, however, she wants to “get into something a little more lighter, cooler, something towards humour”, Aparna says on the phone. “I’m trying to get scripts with a lot more variation.” She has just returned to her home in Kerala after shooting for a Kathak-based dance sequence in Varanasi for a yet-untitled Malayalam film, and has a two-day break before she goes right back to another film set.

Aparna credits her love for art to a childhood surrounded by dance and music. Her parents are singers and musicians, but she decided to learn dance first. She started with Bharatanatyam, and then learnt Mohiniyattam and Kuchipudi. She also trained in classical music, and has done playback singing for a number of songs, including a track in Maheshinte Prathikaaram (2016), which kickstarted her acting career. “Everything in my childhood was about art, but I had not thought about getting into acting at any point,” says Aparna, who was studying architecture when the opportunity came her way. Actor Unnimaya Prasad, who was her teacher in college, suggested that she audition for Maheshinte Prathikaaram.

Click here for Forbes India 30 Under 30 2025 list

Aparna had worked in a handful of Malayalam and Tamil films when she was offered the script that would clinch a National Award for her performance. She took on the role of feisty entrepreneur Bommi opposite superstar Suriya in Sudha Kongara’s Tamil film Soorarai Pottru, which was inspired by the life of Captain Gopinath of Air Deccan. “Soorarai Pottru onwards, I knew that acting is what I want to do in my life. My passion towards cinema changed,” says the self-taught actor, adding that she has had her share of challenges in the last few years, from struggling to stay positive when she has no film offers in hand to body shaming, but she has learnt to move ahead with confidence.

“Actors generally say they pick roles that stay with people, irrespective of screen time, and Aparna has done just that through her career. She has picked characters that add immense value to a film,” says writer and film critic Ashameera Aiyappan. She adds that Aparna’s nuanced performances and self-assuredness, despite pressures from the entertainment industry to conform to a certain physical stereotype, lends freshness and charisma to her on-screen presence.

Aparna, who also runs a clothing brand and an event management company, says it is an exciting time to be an actor in Malayalam cinema. “People are experimenting a lot, coming up with new ideas, so the possibilities seem never-ending. There is a lot more to explore,” she says.

 

Aparna Balamurali (29) 

Actor

Entertainment

(This story appears in the 07 February, 2025 issue
of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)


Source link


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *