A "Baeku" moment !

The other day, as I walked into a studio in West Chennai, I was all geared up to dub the dialogues for my role in an upcoming Tamil film. Another mother's role, this time to Shruti Hassan.

After the pleasantries were exchanged with the sound engineer and the Assistant Director (AD), we started with a run through of the first scene. We discussed the situational dialogues , tone of my voice - and after a couple of takes it was approved . But just then, I heard the AD laughing in the console! Curious, I turned back and asked him the reason for his sudden outburst, but he chose to keep quiet.

Well,  I thought to myself, it was bad manners to prod. I continued dubbing for the next couple of scenes. Soon, it was time for a coffee break and the AD came inside the dubbing room, and we started chatting till the coffee arrived. This time, I decided to ask him why he laughed a little while back and he broke into a wide smile.

Puzzled, I told him that it was okay if the joke was on me and assured that I would take it well. He looked at me and still sporting the widest of smiles,  said " I wonder if there is any daughter who will have such a "Baeku" amma  (to put it simply a “dumb” mother ! For a moment I was taken aback and wondered if he had just paid a complement or….? Looking at my flustered look , he was quick to add "Madam, you come across as a very innocent amma and that is why we always like to cast you in such roles.” He went on to add that the director had tried hard to get another "Amma" but somehow I seemed to fit perfectly into the role of a " Baeku" Amma . “You are very convincing madam !”

Ahem ! Now that was convincing !

It is no wonder that , when I am approached in airports, railway stations, restaurants, movie theatres and heed to a selfie request or a photo, there is always a giggle! The other day, at the Cochin airport , a lady suddenly came next to me and said that her sister was a "big" fan of mine. “She even remembers all your ‘punch’ dialogues!”, she continued. It made me realise that comedy scenes in films cannot be forgotten easily. I quietly thanked all my directors, their assistants and the scriptwriters for having given me those lines in the first place .

Life seldom gives us a second chance, but comedy does ease it out ! It does help in making a very tense situation very light, just like in the movies. In fact, I fully agree with Robin Williams when he said that  "Comedy is acting out optimism."

After a hard day's work in office and some not so good moments with clients/ colleagues/ boss , imagine walking into a store, and the salesman flashing a 1000 watt smile at you? What a feeling! It sure is a mood changer. And the icing on the cake is when he looks at you, points a finger, shakes his head and asks "Amaaama Illaiyaa "  ? - a popular dialogue of mine from the film Ghilli .

Truly a happy "Baeku" moment !