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Actor

1988-04-07 · Kozhikode · Female

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Parvathy Thiruvothu Kottuvatta (born 7 April 1988), known mononymously as Parvathy, is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Malayalam and Tamil films. She has received several accolades.

Parvathy began her acting career with the Malayalam film Out of Syllabus in 2006, and gained critical acclaim for her performance in the Tamil romantic drama Poo (2008). She rose to prominence with her roles in Bangalore Days (2014), Ennu Ninte Moideen (2015) and Charlie (2015). She later appeared in Take Off (2017), Uyare (2019), and Virus (2019).

Beyond acting, Parvathy is a founding member of the Women in Cinema Collective.

Early life

Parvathy was born in Atholi on 7 April 1988 in Kozhikode, Kerala, to P. Vinod Kumar and T. K. Usha Kumari, who are both lawyers. She has a brother named Aum Thiruvothu Karunakaran.

During her schooling years, her family moved and settled at Thiruvananthapuram. After completing her schooling at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Pangode, she did her Bachelor of Arts in English literature at the All Saints College, Thiruvananthapuram.

Parvathy worked as a television anchor at Kiran TV, a full-time music-based channel located in Thiruvananthapuram. She is also a trained dancer, specialized in Bharatanatyam.

Career

Acting debut and success (2006–2011)

Parvathy made her acting debut in the 2006 Malayalam film Out of Syllabus, portraying a supporting role as a college student. Her second venture, Rosshan Andrrews' Notebook, won media attention due to its theme on teenage pregnancy. She appeared alongside Roma Asrani and Mariya Roy, after being picked for one of the three main roles from among 5,000 applicants. She was also seen in Sathyan Anthikkad's comedy-drama film, Vinodayathra (2007), playing a supporting role alongside an ensemble cast including Dileep, Mukesh and Meera Jasmine.

Her first leading role was in the Kannada film Milana, which became a commercial success upon release. Pairing alongside Puneet Rajkumar, she was a surprise selection for the film and began working on the film in April 2007. The film won mixed reviews, but the actress's role was praised with a critic noting she "has been a wonderful selection for the role", adding that "she has that right attitude for the role". The film went on to become a big commercial success, running for 500 days at a multiplex in Bangalore. She returned to the Malayalam industry portraying the leading female role in Sibi Malayil's Flash with Mohanlal and Indrajith, and prior to release revealed that she hoped the film would give a breakthrough as a lead actress in the industry. However, the film failed commercially and garnered poor reviews on release.

Parvathy was selected to play the lead role in Sasi's Poo (2008) and featured alongside Srikanth, portraying the role of a young Tamil village girl named Maari. She revealed that director Sasi selected her after a successful audition, and she learned Tamil to better understand the character. To acclimatize to the role, she had to get her skin tone several shades darker and also visited a firework factory to study Maari's occupation. The actress revealed she found it difficult get out of character and became emotionally attached to the role she had played. Upon release, the film and her performance won rave reviews. A critic from Sify.com noted "Parvathy has lived in the role of Maari and takes your breath away as she effortlessly delivers such a difficult role so convincingly on her debut in Tamil", adding that "she is consistently credible and lifelike and absolutely riveting." Similarly, Rediff.com's reviewer mentioned that Poo is "almost entirely Parvathy's film" noting that "she's superb", while Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote, "Parvathy makes optimum use and plays a rustic belle to the hilt in attire and expression, also getting the body language right." The actress subsequently went on to win the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actress, while also securing other accolades and nominations from several other award juries, notably winning the Vijay Award for Best Debut Actress.

Her only release in 2009 was the Kannada film, Male Barali Manju Irali, directed by Vijayalakshmi Singh, where she dubbed for the role in her own voice. Parvathy accepted the venture, which featured mostly rookie technicians, noting that she was impressed by the director's script and revealed she had turned down several offers from Tamil filmmakers during the period who had wanted to cast her in roles similar to her character from Poo. The film won rave reviews, with a critic noting "Parvathy steals the show" and that "she comes with one of the most absorbing performances", adding that "her level of commitment to the role could be gauged by the way she has taken pains to dub in an alien language almost perfectly."

In 2010, Parvathy reunited with Puneet Rajkumar for Prithvi, which was based on the political landscape of Karnataka. The director has earmarked her for the role while writing the script following the success of Milana. Although the film opened to positive reviews, critics pointed out that Parvathy's character had limited scope, noting that "she was mostly confined to the songs".

In 2011, she starred in Lijo Jose Pellissery's City of God, which garnered mixed reviews. Despite its commercial failure, critics praised her performance as a Tamil refugee girl, calling her "brilliant" and a "dynamo". After the film, Parvathy took a break from acting.

Established actress (2013–2018)

After a two-year break from films, Parvathy made her comeback in 2013 with the Kannada romantic film Andhar Bahar co-starring Shivrajkumar, which told the story of the relationship between a newly married criminal and his wife. She dubbed in her own voice for the film again, revealing that she chose to star in the film as the role had scope for her to perform. The film received positive reviews, with one critic noting "Parvathy lights up the screen whenever she appears and is a delight to watch".

She was next seen in the 2013 Tamil thriller, Chennaiyil Oru Naal, featuring her alongside an ensemble cast. The film, a remake of the 2011 Malayalam film Traffic, has its narrative in a hyperlink format and Parvathy won good reviews for her small role as Aditi. She then signed on for the lead role in Bharat Bala's romantic drama Maryan, opposite Dhanush. The director had seen her performance in Poo and subsequently auditioned her for the part, with Parvathy noting that the character was the best she has played to date. She portrayed Panimalar, a girl in love with the titular character Maryan, who inspires him to overcome his struggles. During production, Parvathy worked with fishermen to get into the mind of her character, while also learning to swim to perform the film's underwater scenes. The film was a critical and commercial success upon its release in June 2013. A reviewer from Sify.com noted Parvathy "leaves a lasting impression", while another critic noted that she "is totally in sync with Dhanush all the way; she has matched him step for step, never allowing him to overshadow her." The Times of India noted "Parvathy is the other pillar of the film, and comes up with a scintillating performance", adding "it is such a pleasure to watch her portray various emotions". Her portrayal as Panimalar earned her multiple nominations for Best Actress, most notably the Filmfare Award for Best Actress - Tamil and the Vijay Award for Best Actress.

In 2014, Parvathy appeared in Bangalore Days, directed by Anjali Menon, which became a major commercial success, with reports claiming as "one of the biggest hits in the history of Malayalam cinema". The film featured an ensemble cast, including Dulquer Salmaan, Nivin Pauly, Fahadh Faasil, Nazriya Nazim, Nithya Menen and Isha Talwar. Parvathy played RJ Sarah, a paraplegic radio jockey. For the role, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress – Malayalam.

In 2015, Parvathy appeared in Ennu Ninte Moideen which narrated…