Zuma Jayaram is happier now than she was when she became the heroine of the movie which went into a billion club. The joy of being a mother of twins at the age of forty-eight shines through her eyes and laughter.
In the mind of that actress of yesterday in cinema, the love for acting is still the same as before. When asked about the movie, Zuma replied that it is still around us. But now Zuma Jayaram’s world is surrounded by these cravings. With Zuma Jayaram listening to new life stories.
When did you know they were twins?
I found out after the first month that there were two. My husband Lallush and I prayed for a healthy baby, male or female.
We got two smart boys. It’s been a month now. We named the babies in the traditional way. O Raul Anthony Philip Mathew. George Philip II.
Antony is the name of Lallush’s mummy’s father. My mom’s dad’s name is George. St. Anthony and St. George are the saints to whom I have given the most devotion. Those were the names given to the children. Antony is nicknamed Thankachan and George is nicknamed George.
Did being a mother at the age of forty-eight make it difficult?
Age never pulled me back. I’m the one who always keeps the twenty-something in mind. We were married in 2013. I am 37 years old.
I want to live a cool life even at the age of seventy. Take good care of your health. Wear trendy clothes. I do not think, ‘Oh, can this happen again?’ The mind must be kept from being affected by stress. My feeling is that you should focus on health and beauty at any age. The wait for the babies was long and she was seeking treatment. My belief is that no matter how good the treatment, there must be God’s grace to have the blessing of having children. We got that blessing.
Sleep at eight-thirty at night. Wake up at 4:30 in the morning. That was my routine. That schedule has changed. Now the kids are my clock. My sleep is based on their sleep. The first week was really hard. Now get used to it. There is a helper. But we need to take care of our children. Their things are all together. Waking up and sleeping all at the same time.
Did you say that the movie is around?
In Mammootty’s Bhishma, my mother Mercy George played the role of the heroine’s mother. I have one niece and two nieces. My younger sister Theresa Rani is married to director and producer Anwar Rashid. Theresa is the producer of the movie ‘Past’.
Brothers Bobby and Bonnie work in the film accounting department. Bobby’s sons Abha and Sooraj starred in the films Trance and Veil. In the meantime, I became the producer of a film called ‘Aadi’. The movie is not around, it’s at home.
So why stay away from acting?
Now if I feel like I need to act, it’s not hard to get a chance. This was not the case before. My father George died earlier. I came to cinema when I had to take on the burden of the family as the eldest child at home. The first film was ‘Third Time’. He did a lot of films like ‘Kuttettan’ and ‘Utsavapittennu’. His last film was Kasturiman.
The film world of that time was completely different from what it is today. Paralysis and problems are more than today. I was not ready to take anyone’s foot for a chance. He did not try to take anyone’s chance. I had a lot of losses in acting that day. I do not want to say more.
Rakhi Ras
Photo: Basil Paulo