Dancer Rukmini to play Rajini’s sister in
Kochadaiyaan
Dancer Rukmini Vijayakumar is riding high on her new film with none other than superstar Rajinikanth, which is also rumoured to be going to Cannes this year. The dancer, who will be seen playing Rajini’s sister in the mythological movie
Kochadaiyaan, gets chatting with us just after getting done with the film about the life of a dancer, what is most important to her and more.
“Working with Rajini was a feeling par excellence. He is a wonderful person and a very refined actor. While it was an honour to work with a man of his calibre, it was the character and the film that got me to sign on the dotted line,” says Rukmini. The dancer, who had once dreamt of becoming an architect and had got through the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University, reveals that dancing compelled her to give up science which was her second love.
“I began ballet and Bharatnatyam classes at the age of eight. I used to love dancing but never really took it seriously enough to pursue a career in it. After I applied to Carnegie Mellon I had to wait for a year as I was underage, it was then that I started dancing at a more serious level. It was during that one year that I began giving performances and loved it thoroughly and realised that solos were my thing!” exclaims Rukmini, who is also a fitness freak and does yoga for two hours everyday.
It was while she was studying dance at the Boston Conservatory that she was offered her first film,
Bommalattam.
“I used to come back to India for four months in a year. During one of those visits, I had injured my hip and could not go back to school. Bommalattam happened to me during that time,” she recalls. Though the pretty damsel with gor- geous curly locks did get a handful of offers once her movie hit the silver screen, she did not take up any projects. “The reason I did not do any more films was because I knew that once I got films, I would never be able to finish my studies. I can act till I am old, but I cannot dance like I can now when I am 50 or 60. Dance is a priority for me,” she asserts.
In fact, so blissful is Rukmini about her dancing that she is almost absolutely oblivious to the rest of the world around her. When asked about her film going to Cannes, she replies, “I do not really know anything about that.”
Another mystery card that she enjoys playing is keeping her age a secret. “I do not see the need to reveal my age to the media,” she insists.
So what does the coming year have in store for her? “There is a lot happening. As far as films are concerned, I am hoping to get a special project that I have been eyeing for a while now. On the dance front I have a tour coming up during autumn that will see me going to the States and the Middle East. I will also be doing a play directed by Prakash Belawadi based on Draupadi,” she informs.
As far as relationships are concerned, we heard that there was something brewing on that front. When asked to comment, Rukmini blushes as she partially confirms, “Something is on the cards!”
The reason I did not do any more films was because I knew that once I got films, I would never be able to finish my studies. I can act till I am old, but I cannot dance like now when I am 50 or 60