Mangalavaaram Emotionally & Physically Draining

Payal Rajput characterizes ‘Mangalavaaram’ as an out-of-the-box thriller in which she has a de-glam role. Set to be released in theatres on November 17 in Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, and Kannada, the Ajay Bhupathi directorial goes beyond run-of-the-mill mystery thriller, she suggests in her latest interview.

“Initially, it was very challenging to approach this emotionally heavy-duty character. I was expected to portray with authenticity and integrity. I studied the character for a month to understand the complex and unconventional narrative. The makeup would take two hours, followed by emotional drainage and exhaustion,” she says.

Payal informs that it took her a fortnight to come out of the character Shailu after the shoot wrap-up. “My mother found me as a complete village after the shoot,” the actress says.

How about the character played by Nandita Swetha? “As you can see, she is a cop who is inquisitive about the happenings in the village,” she says.

Bankrolled by Swathi Reddy Gunupati and Suresh Varma M of Mudhra Media Works along with Bhupathi’s A Creative Works, the film has music done by Ajaneesh B Loknath of ‘Kantara’ fame. “The producers got involved in all aspects. The film was shot for 100 days. And the producers spent a bomb. This film rests on the power of story-telling, not on star power,” she adds.