Renji Panicker recalls his biggest challenge as actor

Renji Panicker, the matchless director who excited Malayalam film audience with his sensational political dramas, is now a major presence on screen too. A name that is synonymous with powerful, echoing dialogues is but a face of love and compassion on screen. As the master director shone as a cop in Shaji Padoor's latest Mammootty movie 'Abrahaminte Santhathikal', which still counts success in theatres, Onmanorama caught up with Renji Panicker to ask Just One Question: Which was the most challenging character that you have done so far?

Without sparing a second thought, Panicker picked 'Mathayi doctor' of Jude Anthany Joseph's 2104 movie'Om Shanthi Oshana'. “I am a very rigid person. I have a natural stiffness in my body language and conduct. Mathayi doctor, on the other hand, is a very soft, flexible person who is easily moved by her daughter's words. He doesn't require the seriousness I believe I possess and pretend in front of others. So naturally it was the greatest challenge I faced as an actor. I thought I would be incapable of handling such a character but Jude seemed pretty sure about my skills,” he said.

Panicker admitted that he was anxious about his flexibility in acting. “I feared someone would scream 'release your breath' when I perform the character of a soft dad. I had been rigid while shooting several scenes in that movie. Jude would alert me frequently to release my breath,” he recalled.

Panicker said that one of the best advice he has received from another director is to 'stop behaving as Renji Panicker on screen'. “I am thankful to Jude Anthany for that,” Panicker added.

Panicker has recently been in the news for openly regretting for all the misogynistic dialogues he has rendered in his previous movies. New-gen M'town celebs lauded the wise filmmaker's courage to update his views according to the changing times.