Mamma Mia
By Asha P Nair
14th May 2012 08:02 AM
Until two years back, they were like any other mother and son. They caught up with the latest flicks in town, drove to shopping malls, beaches and eateries together and talked about everything under the sun. And then like a fairy-tale, the mother becomes the first lady of Thiruvananthapuram. The world changes its colour for the two, since then.
On the occasion of Mothers’ Day, Mayor K Chandrika and her son Anoop Ramesh took time off their busy schedules to tell us how. “We miss our outings together. Every small and big thing, whether it is to buy a book or to watch a film, we used to go out together. She taught me driving, encouraged me to read and finally allowed me to take my own path without any sentimental drama,’’ Anoop beams.
Anoop has chosen his destiny - films. He is the associate of director Shyamaprasad and has been part of his films since ‘Ritu’ to the latest ‘Arike’. After a degree in Computer Science, Anoop had made clear that he wanted to be in the film industry. And K Chandrika, who was then an official with KSEB, had no intention of stopping him either.
“He was born five years after our marriage, much-awaited and precious. He is still so attached to me that when he is home after a shoot, gets up in the morning and plants a kiss on my cheek before starting his day. There is no way I can come against his path. If cinema is his passion, let that be ,’’ Chandrika is a far cry from the stubborn administrator that she is when Anoop is near.
He cannot even remember the last time she hit him. “When I was too small I walked to the neighbour’s house without telling her. She was frantic and searched for me here and there and finally when she saw me she let loose her anger and pain,’’ Anoop says.
Whether it was his liking for gadgets, interest in driving, love for cinema or the crazy ideas he came up with at times, Chandrika has never shown a red signal. So, how does he feel when the media or her opponents in politics bash her up for the rude and bold mannerisms she often displays? “From what I know of her, she has exact ideas of how things should be, and often she is right. I see her as a bold, assertive leader who is doing things for the city. Let me remind you that only those who work receive the bashing,’’ Anoop chips in.
He is aware of her mother’s politics but has no idea where she dumps all the tension she loads up each day. Especially, since the Vilappilsala garbage issue has deepened. “However busy I am or however far he is, we call up once in a day and catch up with each other’s lives,’’ Chandrika says.
Anoop had begun with ad movies, then moved on to films. He began with a film by Murali Nagavally which was later shelved, then moved on to Shaji Kailas film ‘Red Chillies’ and then joined Shyamaprasad where he says he has found the right kind of movies he wants to be part of. He worked for ‘Ritu’, ‘Elektra’, ‘Kerala Cafe’ and ‘Arike’. He was also part of ‘T D Dasan, Std 6 B’ and wants to direct his own movie someday.
“The last movie we saw together was ‘Ritu’. One of his friends who is part of the movie ‘Ordinary’ has been asking me to watch the movie. But I am not able to find time,’’ Chandrika says.
Though they both miss life’s everyday routines they did together earlier, if there is one loss that they mourn equally, it is the death of Anoop’s grandmother and Chandrika’s mother-in-law, Ammini Amma. She had passed away 20 days after Chandrika was sworn in the Mayor.
While Anoop says his mother is a bad cook, he longs for the ‘sambar’ and curries his grandmother used to cook for him. “For somebody who appears this bold, my mother was my grandmom’s favourite. It was not the relationship that in-laws usually share,’’ Anoop says. His father M R Ramesh is a retired official from the Food Corporation of India.
In a few days, Anoop would be back to the sets of a new film and his mother would start missing him again. But one of these days, they plan to spend some quality time together, away from the din of films and politics, just like older times.
On the occasion of Mothers’ Day, Mayor K Chandrika and her son Anoop Ramesh took time off their busy schedules to tell us how. “We miss our outings together. Every small and big thing, whether it is to buy a book or to watch a film, we used to go out together. She taught me driving, encouraged me to read and finally allowed me to take my own path without any sentimental drama,’’ Anoop beams.
Anoop has chosen his destiny - films. He is the associate of director Shyamaprasad and has been part of his films since ‘Ritu’ to the latest ‘Arike’. After a degree in Computer Science, Anoop had made clear that he wanted to be in the film industry. And K Chandrika, who was then an official with KSEB, had no intention of stopping him either.
“He was born five years after our marriage, much-awaited and precious. He is still so attached to me that when he is home after a shoot, gets up in the morning and plants a kiss on my cheek before starting his day. There is no way I can come against his path. If cinema is his passion, let that be ,’’ Chandrika is a far cry from the stubborn administrator that she is when Anoop is near.
He cannot even remember the last time she hit him. “When I was too small I walked to the neighbour’s house without telling her. She was frantic and searched for me here and there and finally when she saw me she let loose her anger and pain,’’ Anoop says.
Whether it was his liking for gadgets, interest in driving, love for cinema or the crazy ideas he came up with at times, Chandrika has never shown a red signal. So, how does he feel when the media or her opponents in politics bash her up for the rude and bold mannerisms she often displays? “From what I know of her, she has exact ideas of how things should be, and often she is right. I see her as a bold, assertive leader who is doing things for the city. Let me remind you that only those who work receive the bashing,’’ Anoop chips in.
He is aware of her mother’s politics but has no idea where she dumps all the tension she loads up each day. Especially, since the Vilappilsala garbage issue has deepened. “However busy I am or however far he is, we call up once in a day and catch up with each other’s lives,’’ Chandrika says.
Anoop had begun with ad movies, then moved on to films. He began with a film by Murali Nagavally which was later shelved, then moved on to Shaji Kailas film ‘Red Chillies’ and then joined Shyamaprasad where he says he has found the right kind of movies he wants to be part of. He worked for ‘Ritu’, ‘Elektra’, ‘Kerala Cafe’ and ‘Arike’. He was also part of ‘T D Dasan, Std 6 B’ and wants to direct his own movie someday.
“The last movie we saw together was ‘Ritu’. One of his friends who is part of the movie ‘Ordinary’ has been asking me to watch the movie. But I am not able to find time,’’ Chandrika says.
Though they both miss life’s everyday routines they did together earlier, if there is one loss that they mourn equally, it is the death of Anoop’s grandmother and Chandrika’s mother-in-law, Ammini Amma. She had passed away 20 days after Chandrika was sworn in the Mayor.
While Anoop says his mother is a bad cook, he longs for the ‘sambar’ and curries his grandmother used to cook for him. “For somebody who appears this bold, my mother was my grandmom’s favourite. It was not the relationship that in-laws usually share,’’ Anoop says. His father M R Ramesh is a retired official from the Food Corporation of India.
In a few days, Anoop would be back to the sets of a new film and his mother would start missing him again. But one of these days, they plan to spend some quality time together, away from the din of films and politics, just like older times.
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