Varalaxmi Sarathkumar
Varalaxmi Sarathkumar (born 5 March 1985) is an Indian actress who has appeared in Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada films. She made her debut with the Tamil film Podaa Podi (2012), portraying a London-based dancer.[4][5]
Varalaxmi Sarathkumar | |
---|---|
Born | [1] | 5 March 1985
Other names | Varu[3] |
Alma mater | Hindustan Arts & Science College (B. Sc) University of Edinburgh (Masters in Management) |
Occupation | Film actress |
Years active | 2008–present |
Parent(s) | R. Sarathkumar (father) Raadhika (step-mother) |
Early life
Varalaxmi was born to actor Sarathkumar and Chaya on 5 March 1985. Her stepmother is actress Raadhika.[1][6]
She is the eldest of four children, with a younger sister Pooja, a younger half-brother Rahul and step-sister Rayanne Hardy. Varalaxmi is a graduate in Microbiology from Hindustan Arts and Science college, Chennai with a Master in Business Management from the University of Edinburgh. She honed her acting skills at Anupam Kher’s Acting School in Mumbai, before becoming a professional actress.[6]
Career
Varalaxmi auditioned for Shankar's Boys (2003) and was selected to play the lead role, before her father requested her to turn down the opportunities. Likewise, she also missed out on opportunities to act in Balaji Sakthivel's Kaadhal (2004) and Venkat Prabhu's Saroja (2008).[7]
Varalaxmi signed on to star in Vignesh Shivan's romantic drama film Podaa Podi (2012) during June 2008, citing that the opportunity to portray a London-based dancer had excited her. The film went through a protracted development, taking four years to make, before being released in October 2012. Co-starring alongside Silambarasan, Varalaxmi won critical acclaim for her performance. Rediff.com noted she was the "scene stealer" and added "she comes across as a genuine, warm person, able and willing to accept those around her for themselves, and rattles off her dialogues with such spontaneity and charm that she wins you over right away".[8] Likewise, a critic from Sify.com wrote she "is the big surprise here as she makes a promising debut and brings alive her character with not just those smart lines, but with the kind of confidence and candour".[9] The film also performed moderately at the box office, and performed particularly well in the multiplexes.[10] Soon after the film's release, Varalaxmi worked on Sundar C's masala film Madha Gaja Raja, alongside Vishal, but the film remains unreleased owing to financial troubles.
Her second release was the Kannada film Maanikya (2014), alongside actor Sudeep, and the film went on to become amongst the most profitable Kannada films of the year. In 2014, she began filming for Bala's Tharai Thappattai (2016), where she had to lose ten kilograms to portray a karakattam dancer.
In 2016, she announced on Twitter that she has been cast alongside Mammootty in the Malayalam film Kasaba. In her tweet, the actress said that the big opportunity to work alongside Mammootty came to her apparently due to her performance in the Tamil film Tharai Thappattai.[11] Varalaxmi was also committed to starring in Aakasha Mittaayee, the Malayalam remake of the Tamil film Appa but left, citing the behaviour of its producers who she called "mannerless".[12] Varalaxmi is currently awaiting the release of two of her films, Sathya and Echcharikkai. In the latter, she essays the role of a dancer who has been kidnapped for money. Varalaxmi turned as Host for a TV show titled "Unnai Arindaal" which will be aired on every Sunday in Jaya TV from 14 October. She played antagonist in the Tamil movie, Sarkar.
Filmography
Year | Film | Role(s) | Language | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2012 | Podaa Podi | Nisha | Tamil | |
2014 | Maanikya | Sindhu | Kannada | |
2015 | Ranna | Herself | Cameo appearance in the song, What to do? | |
2016 | Kasaba | Kamala | Malayalam | |
Tharai Thappattai | Sooravali | Tamil | ||
2017 | Vikram Vedha | Chandra | ||
Nibunan | Vandana | |||
Vismaya | Kannada | |||
Sathya | Anuya Bharathwaj | Tamil | ||
Kaattu | Muthulekshmi | Malayalam | ||
Masterpiece | ACP Bhavani Durga | |||
2018 | Mr. Chandramouli | Bairavi | Tamil | |
Echcharikkai | Swetha | |||
Sandakozhi 2 | Pechankarasi | |||
Sarkar | Komalavalli | |||
Maari 2 | Vijaya | |||
2019 | Neeya 2 | Devi | ||
Tenali Ramakrishna BA. BL | Varalaxmi Devi | Telugu[13] | ||
2020 | Velvet Nagaram | Usha | Tamil | |
Danny | Kunthavai | ZEE5 film | ||
Kanni Raasi |
Anjali | Post-production | ||
Ranam |
TBA | Kannada | Post Production[14] | |
Kaatteri |
Maathamma | Tamil | Post Production | |
Pamban |
TBA | Post Production[15] | ||
Chasing |
Athira | Filming | ||
Krack |
Jayamma | Telugu | Filming | |
Piranthal Parasakthi |
TBA | Tamil | Filming[16] | |
Naandhi |
Aadhya | Telugu | Filming[17] | |
Colors |
TBA | Tamil | Filming | |
Television
Year | Series | Role | Network | Language | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | Enga Veetu Mapillai | Herself | Colors Tamil | Tamil | |
2018 | Unnai Arindhaal | Host | Jaya TV | Tamil | |
2019 | High Priestess | Pooja | Zee5 | Telugu | Guest appearance in Episode 6[18] |
2020 | Kodeeswari | Herself | Colors Tamil | Tamil | Guest |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Film | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2012 | Vijay Award for Best Debut Actress | Podaa Podi | Won |
Edison Award for Best Debut Actress | Won | ||
2016 | 6th South Indian International Movie Awards for Critics Choice Best Actress | Tharai Thappattai | Won |
6th South Indian International Movie Awards for Best Debut Actress | Kasaba | Nominated | |
Behindwoods Gold Medals | Tharai Thappattai | Won | |
2017 | Edison Award for Best Character Role – Female | Vikram Vedha | Won |
Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress - Tamil | Nominated | ||
Techofes Award for Best Supporting Actress | Won | ||
7th South Indian International Movie Awards for Best Supporting Actress | Won | ||
2018 | Behindwoods Gold Medals | Sarkar & Sandakozhi 2 | Won |
Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards for Best Villain — Female | Sarkar & Sandakozhi 2 | Won | |
Techofes Award for Best Female Villan | Sathya | Won | |
2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | Sarkar & Sandakozhi 2 | Won |
Techofes Award for Best Negative Role | Sarkar & Sandakozhi 2 | Won | |
References
- "Happy Birthday Varalaxmi Sarathkumar: The Complete Actress of South Cinema". The Times of India. 5 March 2019. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
- "Varalaxmi is Excited about Maanikya". newindianexpress.com. 29 April 2014.
- Subramanian, Anupama (3 April 2018). "Varalaxmi's fan moment with Kamal Haasan". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
- "Simbu follows Ajith". The Times of India. Times News Network. 9 November 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- Mangandan, K.R. (20 October 2012). "Worth the wait". The Hindu. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- "Varalakshmi: I always wanted to become an actress".
- https://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies-cinema-news-16/varalaxmi-sarathkumar-opens-up-about-her-movies-before-podaa-podi.html
- "Review: Varalakhsmy shines in Poda Podi".
- "Review : (2012)". www.sify.com.
- Raghavan, Nikhil (27 June 2015). "Star scions". The Hindu – via www.thehindu.com.
- "'Kasaba': Mammootty's next with Renji Panicker's son starts rolling".
- ""Can't Work With Male Chauvinists.": Actress Varalaxmi Sarathkumar Walks Out Of A Movie Set!". Just For Women. 4 April 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
- Entertainment Desk. "Varalaxmi Sarathkumar all set for Tollywood debut". The Indian Express (14 January 2019). Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- A. Sharadhaa (21 February 2019). "Varalaxmi Sarathkumar returns to Kannada cinema". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- India Today Web Desk (19 February 2018). "Pamban: Varalaxmi joins dad Sarath Kumar in his next". India Today. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- "Sarathkumar, Radhika and Varalakshmi join hands for Peranthal Parasakthi". Sify. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
- "Allari Naresh's first look from the film Naandhi - Times of India". The Times of India. 20 January 2020. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
- "Telugu web series 'High Priestess' explores psychic world". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 7 December 2019.