Spinning Her Magic!

Though she was brought up in Dubai, she has her roots firmly in Kerala thanks to her strong ‘Malayali’ upbringing. It was when she moved to Pune to pursue her studies that she began to explore films and slowly, she started falling in love with Cinema. Thus began her journey of self-discovery! While everyone expected her to do a Master’s in business management, they were in for a shock when she chose to go to the London Film School instead. Her family reluctantly agreed to let her follow her heart. It was during the convocation ceremony, that they watched her work on screen for the very first time and that’s when they realised that this was her deep passion and true calling. Since then they have been her strong source of support and strength. Her first tryst with Mollywood seemed like a nightmare, as her debut film ‘Manjadikuru’ met with struggles, delays and bias. But she didn’t give up! Soon she was ready with the script of Ustad hotel, which swept the state, national and international awards! With her next blockbuster, Bangalore Days, she had built a brand for herself! Anjali Menon, is a name that is the pride of Kerala today! Ritz catches up with the ace filmmaker, whose latest flick, ‘Koode’ is rocking at the box office!

- Riya Sonny Datson

Instead of a natural progression to business management, it was your choice to dive into a completely new forte, how difficult was it to take the decision?

When you are following your instinct, taking the decision within is the easiest thing to do. For me, doing anything other than this seemed like going against my instinct, which was more difficult. I chose the more instinctive path, which is always easier. Of course, it has its own challenges but that is also a part of the journey.

You are an inspiration to people both inside and outside the industry. With your own share of battles, what has been your biggest learning?

As a filmmaker and an individual, I have learnt most from failure. I think failure is the biggest teacher we have. It makes you understand and learn about what is important, what is really worth fussing over or what is not. If you have had experiences of failure or struggles, even when you succeed, it keeps you grounded. That for me, has been a huge learning.

But all your films have won great critical acclaim and have been such great successes…