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]

In this Indian name, the name Sarathkumar is a patronymic, not a family name, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Varalaxmi.
Varalaxmi Sarathkumar
Born (1985-03-05) 5 March 1985[1]
Bangalore, Karnataka, India[2]
Other namesVaru[3]
Alma materHindustan Arts & Science College (B. Sc)
University of Edinburgh (Masters in Management)
OccupationFilm actress
Years active2008–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. BLVaralaxmi 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.
2018Enga Veetu MapillaiHerselfColors TamilTamil
2018Unnai ArindhaalHostJaya TVTamil
2019High Priestess PoojaZee5TeluguGuest appearance in Episode 6[18]
2020KodeeswariHerselfColors TamilTamilGuest

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

See also


References
  1. "Happy Birthday Varalaxmi Sarathkumar: The Complete Actress of South Cinema". The Times of India. 5 March 2019. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  2. "Varalaxmi is Excited about Maanikya". newindianexpress.com. 29 April 2014.
  3. Subramanian, Anupama (3 April 2018). "Varalaxmi's fan moment with Kamal Haasan". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  4. "Simbu follows Ajith". The Times of India. Times News Network. 9 November 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  5. Mangandan, K.R. (20 October 2012). "Worth the wait". The Hindu. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  6. "Varalakshmi: I always wanted to become an actress".
  7. https://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies-cinema-news-16/varalaxmi-sarathkumar-opens-up-about-her-movies-before-podaa-podi.html
  8. "Review: Varalakhsmy shines in Poda Podi".
  9. "Review : (2012)". www.sify.com.
  10. Raghavan, Nikhil (27 June 2015). "Star scions". The Hindu – via www.thehindu.com.
  11. "'Kasaba': Mammootty's next with Renji Panicker's son starts rolling".
  12. ""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.
  13. Entertainment Desk. "Varalaxmi Sarathkumar all set for Tollywood debut". The Indian Express (14 January 2019). Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  14. A. Sharadhaa (21 February 2019). "Varalaxmi Sarathkumar returns to Kannada cinema". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  15. India Today Web Desk (19 February 2018). "Pamban: Varalaxmi joins dad Sarath Kumar in his next". India Today. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
  16. "Sarathkumar, Radhika and Varalakshmi join hands for Peranthal Parasakthi". Sify. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  17. "Allari Naresh's first look from the film Naandhi - Times of India". The Times of India. 20 January 2020. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  18. "Telugu web series 'High Priestess' explores psychic world". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
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