Catherine Tresa has had a busy year so far, with releases in Tamil as well as Telugu. Her recent Nene Raju Nene Mantri is a success and Catherine is in a good space, getting appreciation for her work in it. We catch her for a chat.
After doing a set of films across the South, do you think you’ve found your own space?
I don’t believe in the concept of a niche or a space. I’m doing good films and I just want to keep getting better. It’s an ongoing process and I can’t stay in one place. I don’t believe in planning too much and I take it as it comes. But yes, I like the commercial mainstream space and I see myself doing quality roles within that space.
Your last Tamil release Kadamban didn’t do too well...
The response to Kadamban was strictly average; all of us know about it. The result didn’t match our efforts and it was a let-down. We slogged hard and gave it our all, but failure is part of the game. I feel it would have performed better with a more appropriate release date.
How do you see your next, Kathanayagan, panning out?
I play a typical urban Chennai ‘girl next door’ in it. The guys in my team feel that the character is like the real me — bossy and dominating. It is different from my earlier Tamil films, and it’s an easy, light part.
As a film, you needn’t think too much about the story and stuff. It’s a light-hearted romcom with several funny scenes, interesting characterisation and quirky performances. The entertainment quotient will be very high.
How comfortable are you with Tamil and Telugu now? Everyone is keen to note an actor’s lip sync these days...
I dubbed for Gautham Nanda, my recent Telugu film. I can speak Telugu fluently now. I can understand Tamil well and I’m picking it up fast. Getting the lip sync right is a part of my job. Everyone says I’ve performed well when I get the lip sync right, but I feel it’s not a big deal at all. I can’t mess with the language and go haywire with my lines.
You’ve done a wide range of films so far. What are the films you’d like to look back at?
I don’t want to name just one or two based on the end result. I put a lot of effort into every film, and I believe in increasing my efforts going forward. Every film is special, irrespective of the result.
Also, I don’t have any expectations from my films. None in the Madras team knew what to expect. We were just sure that we were making a good film.
Eventually, it did really well for everyone involved. Kadamban involved a lot of hard work, but it didn’t work out. I detach myself from a film the moment I’m done with shooting.
There are so many things in cinema, that all one can do is hope the audiences like it. All I can really do is to make sure nobody blames my performance and I perfect everything that is under my control.