Even as Malayalam cinema continues to explore groundbreaking ideas and traverse uncharted territories, a common grouse among many is that today's films largely focus on youngsters, with little to no space for senior characters. "Where are the parents and grandparents in today's cinema?" veteran actors ask. While it might be true to an extent, it's also a fact that filmmakers now abstain from casting the same set of stereotyped actors and instead opt for fresh faces. Manjusree Nair is one such 'new gen' actor who is gradually making her presence felt. Though she debuted with a minor role in Vijay Superum Pournamiyum (2019), it is in the last couple of years that Manjusree has started to leave an impression. With back-to-back noteworthy performances in this year's Love Under Construction (LUC), Alappuzha Gymkhana, and Kerala Crime Files S2 (KCF 2), the actor is already knocking at bigger doors.

Life recently came full circle for Manjusree, a former programme producer at Asianet, when she returned 25 years later with the JioHotstar show LUC, albeit as an actor. "I always regretted quitting Asianet after marriage. When I did the two Hotstar shows (LUC and KCF 2) and realised that I'm once again part of the Asianet family, I felt a strange sense of fulfillment. At the success meet of KCF 2, when I met my former colleagues who now represent Hotstar, one of them said, "Manju ippo vallya aal aayi poyi... nammal okke ippozhum ivide thanne (You have become popular today, but we are still stuck here). They might not know my struggle, but it felt nice to see people noticing my growth."

Acting was never part of Manjusree's plans until she attended a theatre camp in 2016. The three-day all-women camp ended with one of their submissions being approved for the PJ Antony street theatre fest. Manjusree fondly recalls, "It was an adaptation of a novel by Gracy teacher, and I played the lead role of a man named Joseph. It was a major breakthrough for us as we were booked for multiple stages. It was also the time I realised that acting is my passion."

Manjusree's cinema entry was a result of a chance encounter with director Jis Joy while accompanying her daughter for the auditions of Vijay Superum Pournamiyum. A brief appearance in it was followed by minor roles in films like Vedikettu, Oh My Darling, and Ayalvaashi. Her first notable role came with Madhura Manohara Moham, in which she played Saiju Kurup's mother. "It has a sequence where my character drives the car with her two sons and husband by the side, which is not the norm. A lot of conversations also happen during that drive, which were shot from multiple angles. Just like the associate directors assured, the character got registered. It might not have immediately reflected in offers, but it helped me get noticed."

With no contacts in the industry, Manjusree remembers being clueless on how to take her career forward after a point. Later, it was her daughters who encouraged her to consistently attend auditions, irrespective of the outcome. "Auditions are extremely competitive, but also a great experience. It's very common in Hollywood and Bollywood, but here, auditions are held only for very few roles. And with so many actors waiting for an opportunity, the competition is stiff." The actor recalls being auditioned multiple times for the role in LUC, which eventually became her first major break. As Neeraj Madhav's mother, it was her first full-fledged role. "The character goes through a lot of emotions, but director Vishnu (G Raghav) had everything properly described in the script. He was very particular about what he wanted and expected us to follow the script as such."

From there, Manjusree experienced the exact opposite when she landed on the sets of Alappuzha Gymkhana, in which she plays the role of Naslen's mother. "Khalid's (Rahman) working style was totally different. He would explain the scenes just before the shot and would encourage us to improvise the dialogue. The brief I initially got for the role was that she is a frustrated, unhappy wife, going through a midlife crisis. While her son's best quality is motivating others, all she has is 'utter pucham' (disdain). So every time I had a scene with Naslen, Khalid would say, "Chechi puchich thallikko... pucham varatte..." (amp up the disdain).  Though I'm a mother myself, I've never had so much 'pucham' for my kids," she laughs, adding, "But I feel really happy when kids recognise me for the role. Maybe they could see their mothers in me."

Manjusree was recently seen as Indrans' wife in KCF 2, which she rates as her most challenging outing yet. "I'm usually a very expressive person, but this character demanded I withhold my emotions. There's a crucial scene where police officials  interrogate me. Since I didn't know the entire story, I had conceived the scene in my own way. Later, Ahammed (Khabeer) explained that this woman has absolutely no respect for the police. He asked me to get into that body language and perform without revealing any emotions, which was challenging. I was not sure of it even though he okayed the shot, but understood it after watching the full show."

Manjusree, who has a couple of projects lined up, says she is up for any role, regardless of the scope or screentime. "I would love it if the character has some depth, but I can't keep declining others and waiting for that one magic role. I'm not there yet, and I don't feel it's the right approach today. My sole intention is to be recognised as a good artist."