Surabhi talks about her role in Pugazh and Jai

Surabhi, who was last seen in Tamil in Dhanush’s Velai Illa Pattathari, is ready for her second innings in the industry. She is gearing up for the release of Pugazh, where she is paired opposite Jai. The petite beauty engages in a brief conversation with Only Kollywood to talk about her role, Jai and director Manimaaran.

The story of Pugazh revolves around land grabbing by politicians. When land sharks illegally acquire a play ground, Pugazh and his friends stand up for it to protect their treasured property from the power-hungry politicians. “Yes. I have heard that elections are around the corner. I feel it’s a good time to release the movie since people will also connect to it. Major portions in Pugazh have political connection. Manimaaran was inspired by a real life incident and that’s what encouraged him to write Pugazh,” says Surabhi about how the forthcoming assembly elections favor the film’s release.

“The titular role is played by Jai. It’s a role which is not very easy to perform. He has done stunts on his own. There will be some realism in the script since it’s based on a real-life incident,” she says.

Surabhi plays the role of Bhuvana which has two variations in her character. “Initially, she is this girl who has studied outside and is on the lookout for a job. When she lands in a town with her brother, she takes time to adapt to the surroundings. If she sees littered garbage in the streets, she will just stand up for it. She is a person who speaks her heart out and she tries to mend things,” says Surabhi.

When Manimaaran narrated the script to Surabhi, she fell in love with her character and decided to sign on the dotted line. “I liked the entire script and my characterization. When I heard about Bhuvana, I really liked the name. She is a bold girl and her body language speaks. When Bhuvana falls in love with Pugazh (Jai’s character), she becomes his strength. A moral support to Pugazh. That’s how the story changes.”

“I felt very lucky when I signed that film. I’m happy that everyone liked my role in Ivan Vera Maathiri. And, people have still not forgotten that role,” she recalls.

“I would like to thank Manimaaran for having the faith in me and bringing me back to the Tamil industry. He is a very focussed person and a gentleman. He loves filmmaking. He always talks to the point and conveys things as succinctly,” says Surabhi about working with Manimaaran.
“I would love to do both mainstream and artistic roles. I had a substantial role including a fight sequence in the Telugu film Express Raja. Telugu industry is mostly male-dominated and this film had a fight scene as the heroine intro sequence. I would mostly like to pick roles that suit me,” says Surabhi.

“There is a lot of violence in Ram Gopal Varma’s Attack. It’s an intense drama and my character has a lot of scope in the story. It’s come out really well,” she adds.

Surabhi hopes for more new comebacks after the release of Pugazh, which hits the screens on March 18th worldwide.