Vineeth on his evolution from romantic hero to character actor

Vineeth in ‘Bouma’

Though it is one’s first time meeting actor Vineeth, there is a feeling of familiarity, of being in the company of someone one has known for a long time. Somewhere between unforgettable characters like Ramu of Nakhakshathangal, Josekutty of Oridath, Kamaladalam’sSomashekharanunni, Haridas of Sargam, and Munna from Kabuliwala of the 1980s-90s, and most recently as Mohan Pothan of Eko and Vinod Mathew Manjooran of Sarvam Maya of 2025, a generation of Malayalis grew up alongside the actor who started his career as a 15-year-old in 1985.

Vineeth is possibly one of the few actors of his generation who has adapted to the changing rules of the film industry and finds interesting roles coming his way. His latest film is Bouma, written and directed by Rejin S Babu, which released on November 12. Vineeth plays the caretaker of an estate bungalow, who has his share of secrets, in this mystery thriller.

He confesses he is grateful for finding work that consistently gives him the chance to explore a role/character like in Bouma, “I am grateful that at this age I find work that challenges me, that people are thinking of me in places where such roles are being written. That is when you get an opportunity to prove yourself. I am an actor who is always excited to do something new, and in that way my character in Bouma is very interesting for an actor to perform. Whether it is histrionics or the appearance, it is a combination of these.”

The actor, 57, says the role challenged him in more ways than one.

“The character travels through different periods, so the appearance, the body language and the look were important. We worked on that and once that was sorted, the performance just fell into place. The director has written it beautifully. The character is well-defined, and there is a lot of mystery surrounding him and the others in the film as well. Bouma has been mounted on a large canvas, with the cream of technicians of Malayalam cinema being part of the project — cinematographer Sharan Velayudhan, editor Sooraj ES, and music director Cristo Xavier, to mention some.”

Vineeth in Kochi

The actor, who, initially in his career, would have been among the youngest people on a film set, speaks affectionately about his younger co-stars Sagar Surya and Revathy Sharma, “they are outstanding, committed actors… it was enriching listening to their experiences, while I got to share some of mine as well.”

While on sharing experiences, he smiles when reminded that he is now a “senior”. “Whether you are a senior or a junior, every day is a learning experience. I treasure the value of one’s experiences; it is a blessing. But, when working with a junior, I am excited about their pattern of working, especially when you have such versatile youngsters.”

His last couple of projects (Eko, the web series Roslin) and now Bouma are horror/thrillers, “Yes, it has been horror and thriller all along, yes,” laughing as he responds, anticipating the question. He explains how the genre has fans all over and why a unique plot and neatly-crafted performances make a film and series popular.

On how he keeps it different in content that forms part of the same genre, Vineeth says, “It is always the character, and what do I contribute to it differently. It could be the body language, the rendition, the style of voice modulation, especially when there are characters, like in Bouma, who are middle-aged or older.” Sarvam Maya, he reminds, was not a horror film “However, my next two are. Both high-profile, directed by very popular directors [laughs], and there is nothing subtle about the horror in these.”

Vineeth seems comfortable in the niche he has found for himself, “I am lucky because for a long time I was stamped as this romantic hero, running around and singing songs, which was also an absolute delight because I was getting to ‘sing’ these beautiful songs. Acting for SPB and Jayachandran sir’s singing. Enacting Dasettan’s [Yesudas] songs is not easy; the bhaavam (emotion) he gives each song is brilliant. I remember Hariharan sir telling me to listen carefully to Dasettan’s rendition and pay attention to how he modulates each word for Sargam. That was a learning experience for me. Despite playing a romantic character, I had a lot of variety even in those roles — be it Ghazal, Parinayam, Kabuliwala, Maanathey Vellitheru.…”

It has been 41 years as an actor, is there a role that he has wanted to essay?

“It was a long time ago — a dancing role. That dream is gone. There was some dance in Chandramukhi, or kathakali in Kamadalam, even Rathrimazha. But it was never a fully dance-based film. It is an unfinished dream. Also, when such films are made it should be supported by a strong story that would appeal to the people. That is the beauty of Manichitrathazhu. It has a story, and a dancer like Shobhana takes it to a different level. If a musical era comes back, we may get a Sankarabharanam or a Sagarasangamam.”

Vineeth seems to have settled into his character roles era, which he says gives him space to perform. That said, he confesses he is particular about the team, the storyline, the script and how much the character contributes to the script.

“Even if it is a cameo, if there is something substantial that a character can contribute to a story, then I will do it. That is how Sarvam Maya happened. It was just that one scene…sometimes you know something will work when you read the script. In the long run, for people to remember you, the goodwill factor contributes a lot to what you have done as an actor. People value that, is what I have gathered from my experience. I have had the honour of working with some of the greats, and even now people talk about those films…”