Post that, Keerthy has had more films releasing. Those films not being on the same league as ‘Mahanati’ is a different question, but those roles were so minuscule, so superficial, and so unnecessary, that it does a huge disservice to not just Keerthy Suresh as an actress but her as a person. Have filmmakers not seen what she’s capable of?
But five releases in a year is quite an achievement for a mainstream actress. She was the main lead in the movie Nadigar Thilagam. She was also part of the two sequels, Sivakarthikeyan-starrer Seema Raja and Sarkar. Here’s a peek at her 2018.
Movies
Nadigaiyar Thilagam| Mahanati
The icing on the cake this year was her outstanding performance in Nadigaiyar Thilagam (Mahanati in Telugu), a biopic of veteran actress Savithri. She literally lived the character and shed the image of a bubbly young heroine who romance heroes. Her acting prowess and her ability to deliver emotions were evident in Nadigayar Thilagam. The best performance comes when she finds the cheating of her husband and the way she expresses her emotions were terrific. She brought Savithri before the eyes of the audiences and her on-screen presence meant a successful run for the movie in both Tamil and Telugu.
Seema Raja
In this Sivakaritheyan starrer, Keerthy Suresh’s role was brief. She killed it as the queen and the character was quite courageous, however, it she underplayed it. For someone as strong as Keerthy, she could have nailed it even better.
Saamy 2
It’s the 21st century, at a time when we have female-lead films that manage to rake in huge money at the box office, and yet we still have movies that reduce women to nothing more than ‘pretty things’ where her character is only considered relevant because she’s the much-needed romantic angle in the hero’s life. Her beauty is of high significance and intelligence isn’t mandatory. In this sequel of a popular early-2000s film, Keerthy Suresh played the daughter of a rich politician. She’s funny, naive and inquisitive. Although her role was to romance the hero and see him beat up the bad guys, Keerthy did manage to make the most of it. But, sadly, that is how underwritten her role was.
Sandakozhi 2
There was a lot of expectation among the audience as they wanted to see Keerthy Suresh match up to Meera Jasmine’s role in the first part. Keerthy was chirpy in her role and even did a few stunts. It was definitely a tad better than her role in Saamy 2 but, the trope of her romancing the hero continued with little substance given to her character.
Sarkar
If Keerthy walked in Mahanati with the same shadow and camera angle that would be reserved for a hero, then she was reduced to a prop with nothing to contribute in AR Murugadoss’ Sarkar. Her character is someone who follows Vijay’s Sundar Ramasamy around like a lovestruck puppy, always in awe of what he is capable of while we, as the audience, know nothing about her. The forced love story and the lack of interest of even making her character go beyond the love story are so apparent that it reminds us of how filmmakers would treat an actress of Keerthy’s popularity (and prowess) just because she’s saleable now.
Post Mahanati, while the offers might continue for Keerthy for big budgeted ‘mass’ films, the quality of roles never seems to evolve. Just like how in Saamy Square and Sandakozhi 2, the idea is to have her as the pretty prop to the macho hero who takes his story further. And what do we know of her character, her background, her thoughts and perspectives? Zilch.
Fashion Goals
With the success of Mahanati, Keerthy Suresh’s world turned around. She was no longer the heroine that simply worked as a love interest for the hero. She was now an actress for whom the content and the character mattered, and this reflected on her personality this year, rising as someone distant but not cold, yet approachable and wise beyond her years. Fashion wise, it was Keerthy’s best year. Her outfits were extra but her attitude was far more fiery. She wore innumerable sarees, lehengas and ethnic dresses and taught all fashionistas a thing or two about experimenting with Indian wear. She has maintained a style quotient that never failed the fashion police and week after week, her outfits kept getting better. Clearly, we’ve found our next fashion icon!
