RIP KPAC Lalitha: ‘The actor who breathed cinema’, writes Shanker Ramakrishnan

Almost everyone today could recall KPAC Lalitha’s acting prowess. There definitely won’t be any dissenting voice on her greatness and her unique place in Malayalam film industry. But, what struck me the most was her depiction of the character Narayani in the film Mathilukal. She didn’t appear on screen even once. Yet, she gave life to Narayani with her magical voice.

When we were finalising the movie Urumi, we needed a voice to narrate the story in the opening sequence. As usual, baritone was the preferred option and names of great actors, including Amitabh Bachchan, came up during discussion. But, when I suggested Lalitha as the narrator, Prithviraj and Santhosh Sivan were only happy to support. My best memory about the movie is the phone call I received from Mani Ratnam.

He congratulated us for bringing in such a powerful female voice and told us that that had been the distinctive feature of the movie. The characters she had essayed in a career spanning over five decades were routed in reality. She polished her skills by picking up cues from the social and cultural spheres.

With equal ease, she could act as a caring mother who is a bundle of affection and as a nagging mother-in-law whose jealousy would know no bounds. She was least bothered about the negative characters as long they challenged her and satiated her quest for excellence.

Her modest upbringing helped her stay grounded even at the height of her fame. As the wife of legendary director Bharathan, she had travelled along the growth of Malayalam film industry. Her demise is a personal loss for me as Sidharth is my dear friend. Let me also join thousands of film lovers today to offer tears of love for the legendary actor.

(The writer is a director, screenwriter and actor)