‘My Dad Has Never Done So Many Retakes’: Vismaya Mohanlal Opens Up About Working With Mohanlal in Thudakkam

Making a film can be intimidating for any newcomer, but for Vismaya Mohanlal, the pressure came with an extra layer she was stepping into Malayalam cinema as the daughter of superstar Mohanlal.

Vismaya and Ashish Antony, son of filmmaker and producer Antony Perumbavoor, made their acting debuts together in director Jude Anthany Joseph’s Thudakkam. The film has given both newcomers an opportunity to experience the realities of filmmaking while also putting them under the spotlight.

For Vismaya, the decision to become an actor was something she discussed with her mother Suchitra Mohanlal and brother Pranav Mohanlal before informing her father.

She revealed that acting and performance had always been part of her interests, particularly through theatre and other artistic pursuits. However, fear of failure prevented her from making the leap earlier.

“I would actually have liked to have debuted earlier I think fear held me back,” Vismaya said, explaining that the hesitation largely came from the fear of starting something new professionally.

Working With Mohanlal Was More Nerve-Racking Than Expected

One of the biggest challenges for Vismaya was working opposite her own father.

While she was excited about sharing the screen with Mohanlal, the reality of being on set with one of Indian cinema’s most experienced actors made her nervous.

She admitted that she became so conscious of getting everything right that the pressure affected her performance.

The result? Several retakes.

In a light-hearted moment, Vismaya joked that she does not think her father has ever had to do so many retakes in his career.

The experience, however, became an important lesson for the young actor. She realised that overthinking a scene can sometimes make it harder to perform naturally.

Rather than seeing those early struggles as a setback, Vismaya now considers them an essential part of her learning process.

Ashish Antony Took a Different Route

For Ashish Antony, acting was never originally part of the plan.

He had been working with his father Antony Perumbavoor at their production company and was more interested in filmmaking and direction. His decision to act in Thudakkam was largely influenced by Vismaya’s involvement in the project.

The two have known each other since childhood, but Ashish said the film gave them an opportunity to spend more time together and develop the comfort required to perform as co-stars.

They also exchanged feedback during filming, which helped both actors feel more confident.

Interestingly, Ashish chose not to make his debut as a conventional hero. Instead, he took on the challenging role of Jithu, a character with negative shades.

What attracted him to the part was its unusual nature—and particularly the fact that the character had no dialogues.

Ashish said Mohanlal, Suchitra Mohanlal and Jude Anthany Joseph believed he could handle the role, giving him the confidence to take the risk.

Vismaya Wants More Action Roles

Vismaya’s background also helped shape her performance in Thudakkam. A Muay Thai specialist, she particularly enjoyed the film’s action sequences.

She described the choreography as being almost like a dance because performers need to control their movements rather than simply use maximum force.

ALSO READ : Hrithik Roshan agrees with filmmaker’s ‘stardom over cinema’ debate: ‘Somehow we haven’t grown up’

Working with action choreographers Yannick Ben and Silva Master was among the highlights of her experience.

Vismaya also revealed that she would be open to taking on a full-fledged action film in the future—and even playing a villain.

For her, some of the most difficult moments in Thudakkam were not necessarily the action scenes. Small details, such as handling a cassette recorder correctly or getting certain Malayalam words right, required concentration.

But the scene with her father remained the biggest challenge.

‘Everyone Won’t Like You’

Like many newcomers entering the film industry today, Vismaya and Ashish are also learning to deal with social media trolling.

Ashish said that having spent time around the film industry and his family’s production house, he had already seen how criticism and online trolling work.

He believes there is a difference between genuine criticism and hateful comments, and he has gradually learned not to take everything personally.

Vismaya’s approach is slightly different.

She recently faced trolling after a short video from an event circulated online. She explained that she tends to move around when nervous, and the brief clip did not necessarily represent her personality.

Rather than reading the comments, she chooses to stay away from them because she knows they can affect her.

The advice from Mohanlal has helped her put the experience into perspective: not everyone will like you, and that is simply part of being in the public eye.

A New Generation Learning From the Old Guard

Both debutants also said Thudakkam gave them a greater appreciation of the amount of work that goes into making a film.

Ashish was particularly struck by his father’s longtime friend and collaborator Mohanlal, who has appeared in hundreds of films over an extraordinary career.

He said watching the veteran actor work made him understand just how much effort goes into maintaining such a prolific career.

For Vismaya and Ashish, Thudakkam may be their first film, but the experience appears to have given them something more valuable than simply a debut credit a firsthand understanding of the discipline, pressure and patience required to survive in cinema.

And if Vismaya has her way, her next chapter could take her even deeper into action-oriented roles.

She hopes Thudakkam will also inspire more women and children to explore martial arts, making the film’s message extend beyond the theatre.