Divya Unni Exclusive Interview: Divya Unni talks about her attempt at breaking Guinness Record with Classical Dance | ആകാശഗംഗ ചെയ്യുമ്പോൾ അതിന്റെ Intesity അറിയില്ലായിരുന്നു Divyaa Unni Interview
~PR.16~
~PR.16~
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00My family made me a celebrity.
00:04We always find your face to be very refreshing.
00:07When I was around 13-14 years old,
00:09my family told me that I wasn't good enough.
00:15Are you a fitness dancer?
00:18Yes, I am a dancer.
00:19I was born a vegetarian.
00:21I don't eat non-vegetarian food.
00:23When did you come in front of the camera for the first time?
00:25When I came next week,
00:26they used to say,
00:27we saw you on YouTube,
00:29we saw you were in movies.
00:34Were there any offers for movies in those days?
00:38Again,
00:39because of social media,
00:42people got to know everything.
00:47I used to come on important dance trips.
00:50Basically, my father used to do my PR work.
00:54When I present something new on a stage,
00:57I like to say that it turned out well.
01:01Hi, hello viewers.
01:02Welcome to our show, Untold With Ajin.
01:04Today, we have some untold stories to tell.
01:06A face that Malayalees don't get tired of,
01:08can be said to be my real wife.
01:11So, let me welcome,
01:12Divya Unni.
01:13So, ma'am, welcome.
01:15Ma'am, you have a career,
01:16a career that mixes cinema, art and dance.
01:21What have you taught in that career?
01:26Life itself,
01:29was a set of studies.
01:33I am still studying.
01:36I can't say it in detail,
01:40but I have never had a situation
01:42where I had to see my life and art separately.
01:46I haven't been able to do that.
01:48I am trying to merge both.
01:51I heard that you used to handle
01:53cinema and college together.
01:56How are you handling both,
01:58personally and professionally?
02:01Now, it is more challenging.
02:05Social media was good,
02:07but we have a responsibility for it.
02:11We always have a fear
02:13whether what we do is enough.
02:19Just like the world is in our hands,
02:22that is the effect of social media.
02:27We feel a connection with
02:29each and every social media family.
02:34When we feel that connection,
02:36we feel a responsibility towards them.
02:38For example,
02:39if I am going to a city for a program,
02:43I would ask if the people there are crying.
02:46If I receive messages from there,
02:48I would ask if they are crying.
02:50I would convey messages to them.
02:52To see them.
02:53I would take an invitation video for that.
02:56I would convey messages to them.
03:00We are the PR for that program.
03:03In our art life,
03:08we have a good word for it.
03:10I have seen it and I would like to see it.
03:13If I receive a message,
03:15I would like to see if I have reached them.
03:20That is a positive side of it.
03:24It motivates us to reach
03:26the people we love.
03:31Along with that,
03:32there is an added responsibility.
03:35That is the added responsibility
03:37in the personal and professional life.
03:40But we enjoy it.
03:42As I said in the intro,
03:44if there is a face that people don't get tired of,
03:47you can place it there.
03:50When you take a new initiative,
03:52this is a new initiative for dance.
03:55When dance school started in 2004,
03:57it was a new initiative.
03:59What was the motivation for this?
04:01We can go to Guinness.
04:03We can line up 12,000 people
04:05and do a program like this.
04:07It is not an initiative.
04:09I am just a face.
04:11The team behind this
04:13is called Mridanga Vishan.
04:15The magazine and its CEOs,
04:18they are all
04:22Mr. Shameer and Mr. Nikosh.
04:24Their vision,
04:26they spoke to me
04:30and I brought their planning
04:32to the people
04:34through social media.
04:37I have choreographed it.
04:41I am just a part of it.
04:44This is not my initiative.
04:46This is actually
04:48brought together by Kerala.
04:50I can't say it is Kerala.
04:54All our dancers
04:56have come together.
04:58This is a collective effort
05:00by everyone.
05:03When you stand as an actor,
05:05the first stage,
05:07the first camera experience
05:09is very important.
05:11I remember the first stage.
05:13Of course.
05:15Here at the Cochin Flower Show,
05:19Shakuntala's
05:23costume with flowers,
05:27I remember that.
05:29At the Cochin Flower Show,
05:31for 10 years,
05:33I was a part
05:35of the competition.
05:37That was one of the first stages
05:39in my memory.
05:41The first time I danced
05:43at our family temple,
05:45I have a lot of memories.
05:47What was the first day
05:49in front of the camera?
05:51The first time in front of the camera
05:53was a serial for Doordarshan.
05:55It was a small one.
05:57After a while,
05:59you become more conscious
06:01of the camera,
06:03the art you do,
06:05the art we do.
06:07When you learn the history
06:09of Bharatanatyam,
06:11how much has it evolved
06:13your art?
06:17I think,
06:19for me,
06:21it started evolving
06:23when I started teaching.
06:25That's when
06:27I started performing
06:29and people's opinions
06:31started coming to me.
06:33When I started teaching
06:35my students,
06:37I had to answer their questions
06:39correctly.
06:41That's when I started
06:43paying more attention to it.
06:45How can I make them
06:47understand it?
06:49That's when
06:51I started evolving
06:53even though I didn't know it.
06:55What was the challenge
06:57when you went to dance school?
06:59The challenge was
07:01the way of learning
07:03for the first few years.
07:05The teachers here
07:07had to be very strict.
07:09They had to be very strict.
07:11They had to be very strict
07:13in the first few years.
07:15They had to put in a lot of effort.
07:17All the teachers here
07:19were very strict.
07:21The teachers there were friendly.
07:23That was a big
07:25difference.
07:27Even though I wasn't
07:29a very strict teacher,
07:31it was a big
07:33difference for me.
07:35So,
07:37I had to tone it down.
07:39I had to change the way
07:41I spoke.
07:43The students were given
07:45in a blank slate.
07:47Even if they were
07:49in the first grade,
07:51they would have a background
07:53in Ramayana, Krishna,
07:55Bharatnatyam,
07:57and other festivals.
07:59They would have a background.
08:01But the students there
08:03didn't have that.
08:05So, when I told them,
08:07I had to introduce
08:09the character
08:11right from the start.
08:13That was different for me.
08:15The picture I drew
08:17was for them.
08:19From the characters
08:21in Mahabharata and Ramayana,
08:23to the festivals,
08:25to Onam and Vishu,
08:27that was the picture
08:29I drew for them.
08:31That was a huge responsibility.
08:35Do they know that you are a star?
08:37That you were
08:39a very celebrated artist?
08:41After I joined,
08:43I joined for the first week.
08:45Next week,
08:47they would say,
08:49Miss Divya, we saw you on YouTube.
08:51We saw you were in movies.
08:55Their parents know that.
08:57Yes, their parents know that.
08:59In the first class,
09:01they would give the intro
09:03and then go back
09:05to get more knowledge.
09:07They would say,
09:09this is how the teacher is.
09:11Then they would come back
09:13and say, we saw the teacher.
09:15The sky is coming in 1999.
09:17This year, we celebrate 25 years.
09:21Even now,
09:23there is a haunting feel
09:25to that story.
09:27Back to back cinema
09:29was happening at that time.
09:31How much did you understand
09:33the intensity of the stories?
09:37I had told this earlier.
09:39After listening to the story,
09:41reading the script,
09:43there was nothing like that.
09:45When I was acting,
09:47there was nothing like that.
09:49The directors would say,
09:51I am acting.
09:53They would read the script.
09:55Many directors
09:57were not interested in prompting.
09:59They would read the script
10:01by heart.
10:03There was no preparation for it.
10:05Of course,
10:07there was lens,
10:09makeup trial,
10:11it was a movie like that.
10:13Apart from that,
10:15there was no other
10:17reading or preparation.
10:19Have you ever felt like
10:21the films that you missed
10:23became a hit?
10:25With the help of God,
10:27I did not feel like
10:29I had lost anything.
10:31I was able to do
10:33what I wanted to do.
10:35When you stand
10:37as an artist,
10:39people come to you
10:41and take photos of you.
10:43Even if it is outside,
10:45it does not have that much impact.
10:47But still,
10:49we say that there are no places
10:51without Malayalees.
10:53How was your travel
10:55and rap?
10:57People ask
10:59when they can see you
11:01in a movie.
11:03Again,
11:05because of social media,
11:07people get to know
11:09everything.
11:11I cannot claim to be
11:13very active,
11:15but I share
11:17what I do
11:19in my life
11:21through social media.
11:23I like it.
11:25It gives positivity.
11:27Giving blessings
11:29to children's birthdays,
11:31or
11:33when I introduce
11:35something new,
11:37people say it is good.
11:39I like that.
11:41Because of that,
11:43people already know.
11:45Let me ask you
11:47a question.
11:49When people come now,
11:51they say,
11:53your daughter started
11:55in school.
11:57That is the response
11:59I get now.
12:01After the announcement
12:03of your movie,
12:05people were waiting for it.
12:07Some people say,
12:09they just need to see you.
12:11Are the feedbacks
12:13pressurizing the event?
12:15No.
12:17Actually,
12:19this is a very different
12:21event.
12:23So many dancers,
12:25so many hands,
12:27feet, mind,
12:29all of them
12:31are dancing in the water.
12:35To envision
12:37that,
12:39when we think about it,
12:41it is a goosebump moment.
12:45I can see
12:47the enthusiasm
12:49in people.
12:51More than impatience,
12:53I am getting
12:55a feeling of
12:57passion.
12:59Of course,
13:01it is a big song.
13:03It is a good song.
13:05My students
13:07are preparing
13:09to learn it.
13:11The focus is
13:13on that.
13:17You are a proper Kochi girl.
13:19Born in Kochi.
13:21Studied in St. Dinesas.
13:23Committed to English.
13:25During that time,
13:27do you have any Kochi memories?
13:29All my memories
13:31are here. I was born in Ernakulam.
13:33Many people don't know.
13:35Is it?
13:37I was born and raised
13:39in Ernakulam. I am still here.
13:43I have not relocated
13:45or anything like that.
13:47I was born in Houston.
13:49I am still in Houston.
13:53In my career,
13:55I didn't take a break.
13:57I completed my schooling.
13:59When I was in 10th grade,
14:01I got married.
14:03After that,
14:05when I was doing my pre-degree and degree,
14:07I did cinema.
14:09I continued my studies.
14:11So,
14:15my life is linked to Ernakulam.
14:19During this time,
14:21were there any good film offers?
14:23When you settled in the US,
14:25were there any offers?
14:27Yes, there were offers.
14:29But, for the first few years,
14:31I did dance school,
14:33set up and all that.
14:35Then,
14:37the films I mentioned earlier,
14:39when they came,
14:41Date Clash,
14:43I did all that after I went there.
14:45When I was in my career,
14:47I was not active.
14:49Then, I came here
14:51and started acting.
14:53That was the gap.
14:55That's when it happened.
14:57During this time,
14:59post-COVID,
15:01did you get any offers?
15:03Were there any discussions?
15:05Yes, there were.
15:07That's what I am saying.
15:09Only after I moved there,
15:11I was not able to work out.
15:13I had to change my films.
15:15Are there any now?
15:17No.
15:19I haven't become a man yet.
15:21Some people might have
15:23a fanboy moment.
15:25For example,
15:27a film that has a lot of importance
15:29for dance.
15:31Because, you know,
15:33you are the best.
15:35There are many scripts
15:37that have a lot of importance
15:39for dance,
15:41through social media.
15:43Scripts that have
15:45a lot of importance
15:47for dance.
15:49Or,
15:51scripts that have a lot of
15:53importance for writing.
15:57Where did you realize
15:59that you were a celebrity?
16:01When did you realize
16:03that you were a celebrity?
16:05It's not like that.
16:07They made me a celebrity.
16:09It's because of their efforts.
16:11Otherwise,
16:13I wouldn't have
16:15done a lead role
16:17in a film.
16:19My journey
16:23was in Ernakulam itself.
16:25I did stallions,
16:27karayogam,
16:29Navaratri competitions,
16:31U.H.N. festivals.
16:33I did cover pages
16:35for Madhavami, Manorama,
16:37Onam and Vishu.
16:39I did cover pages
16:41for my own home.
16:43We used to do cover pages
16:45at home for our own home,
16:47in a natural way.
16:49I did cover pages
16:51for my children,
16:53for my grandmothers.
16:55I did cover pages for my grandmothers.
16:57All these were planned by my parents.
16:59They put in efforts to do it.
17:01Even if I win a competition,
17:03I did cover pages
17:05for my own home.
17:07I did cover pages for my own home.
17:09If we publish it in a newspaper, they will publish it.
17:15We have a passport photo.
17:17Basically, my PR work was done by my father.
17:21It will be published in all the newspapers.
17:23When a child's face appears in a competition,
17:27it will naturally catch the attention of the artist.
17:31That's how offers come.
17:33Then, there was a film called April 18, by Palayanthavanan Sir.
17:39My mother and I went to see the film after school.
17:44It was a press release.
17:46My film, my mother's film, and the dialogues.
17:48That's how the press release was done.
17:50Promotions?
17:51Promotions.
17:52So, we called for that.
17:54We got a photo of that.
17:56Then, there was another offer.
17:58Then, there was a program called Poomottukal by Doordarshan,
18:02where we did dance and anchoring.
18:06I was in the 2nd and 3rd grade.
18:09From there, we went to Doordarshan's serials.
18:13From Doordarshan's serials,
18:15the last serial I did was
18:17Ini Unnu Vishrammikettai.
18:21I was the director for that.
18:24So, my family made me a celebrity.
18:28So, they didn't have a realization.
18:32They had a vision.
18:34If you promote, maybe there will be talent.
18:37That's why this happened.
18:39That's all.
18:40How was it in Tamil and Telugu?
18:42When offers came?
18:44In Tamil and Telugu,
18:46after doing a lot of movies here,
18:49how did we get that phase?
18:56Srividhyamma told me.
19:00So, a couple of offers came.
19:04I did a couple of gulf shows.
19:06I travelled with Khusboo Mam.
19:11I did Tamil for the first time in Sundar C Sir's movie.
19:15Now, people give a lot of importance to dance.
19:20More than art,
19:22how can we make an impact on our lifestyle?
19:26There are some researches going on.
19:28There are discussions.
19:30So, as a teacher,
19:32how do you see the future
19:34of dance as an art,
19:36making an impact on people's lives?
19:38To make an impact on people's lives,
19:42people should have the mind to spend time with it.
19:51To make them reach that,
19:53we have to open a pathway for that.
19:56That's like a magnet.
19:58If you open that pathway,
20:00if they understand the value of it,
20:03they will automatically be attracted to it.
20:07I have been teaching dance for 21 years in an American school.
20:16I have met people who have come to me at the age of 5 or 6.
20:21Now, they are adults.
20:23They have worked in many fields.
20:26But still, they are passionate about dance.
20:30They always have an added strength.
20:36I have seen them dancing.
20:38So, now,
20:40more than my life,
20:42when I see the discipline,
20:44the dance,
20:46and the functionality in their lives,
20:50I realize the benefits of it.
20:53You must have seen many students.
20:56Personally, their growth.
20:58Is this the first instruction you give them?
21:00To approach it with a little dedication?
21:03No.
21:04First, we teach it to small children,
21:07so that they can enjoy it.
21:13There are many repetition phases for this.
21:16For the first time,
21:18we have to write a lot of things down.
21:21If the handwriting is good,
21:23we have to write it down and learn.
21:26If we have to write down the adhava shuddhi,
21:28manga shuddhi,
21:30we have to spend a lot of time on it.
21:32It becomes bright.
21:34But, it is monotonous.
21:36For a 7 or 8 year old child,
21:38it is monotonous.
21:40So, we have to take care of them,
21:42stay with them,
21:44and be friendly.
21:46Only when they are 13 or 14,
21:48we tell them that our style is not good.
21:51Original teacher's advice.
21:53So, when they are 13,
21:55it is a small phase.
21:57If they stay like that for 3 years,
21:59when they are 16,
22:01they will have the desire to do it.
22:04Are you still a fitness dancer?
22:07Yes, I am mainly a dancer.
22:10What about your lifestyle?
22:12I was born a vegetarian.
22:15I don't eat non-vegetarian food.
22:18Now, I am doing some strength training.
22:22Apart from that,
22:24I do dance and yoga.
22:27In this initiative,
22:29what was the most exciting point
22:32for you?
22:34December 29th is a big day.
22:37Have you thought about
22:39how the next day will be?
22:41No, I haven't thought about it.
22:44This is a long journey.
22:46We started this journey
22:486 or 8 months ago.
22:54From the start,
22:56Mr. Shamir and Mr. Nikosh,
22:59and Mrs. Poornima from Houston,
23:02we had a lot of discussions.
23:07We don't think about it together.
23:11If we think about it together,
23:14we feel like,
23:16this is not right.
23:18So, we thought about it
23:20step by step.
23:23Step 2 was the creation of the song.
23:26The song was created
23:28by all the masters.
23:30Mr. Kaithapuram, Mr. Deepankaran,
23:32Mr. Anoop, everyone.
23:34The song came out beautifully.
23:37We had released a small bit of it
23:40as a dance challenge.
23:42It is a feel we got in Kailasam
23:45when we talked about Shiva's dance.
23:48The challenge was for me,
23:51to choreograph it,
23:53take a video,
23:55and register it
23:57for all the artists.
23:59So, we have been going
24:01through each stage
24:03for a long time.
24:07We have been going
24:09step by step.
24:11It is a big day,
24:13but I think
24:15we are preparing.
24:18What was the feedback
24:20from the artists?
24:22Is it still maintained?
24:26It is still maintained.
24:28The feedback is always positive.
24:34We are trying to make
24:36a record in Kerala.
24:39Everyone is encouraging us.
24:44I wish you all the best.
24:46As I said earlier,
24:48it is always refreshing
24:50to see your face.
24:52We can say that
24:54Malayalees are not bored.
24:56I wish you all the best.
24:58I hope to see you
25:00in films soon.
25:02Thank you for the time.