Pratap Was My First Co-Star: Suhasini On The Loss Of Her Friend

On Friday, Kollywood was shocked to hear about Pratap Pothen's death. Pratap, an actor and filmmaker par excellence with over 100 films to his name, died in his sleep from a heart attack. As condolences from friends and fans poured in, Suhasini Maniratnam, who made her acting debut in the award-winning film Nenjathai Killathe, starring Pratap Pothen and Mohan opened up to the media.

“He was my first co-star. But I never even imagined that he was acting in the film! It was supposed to be a love story with Mohan and me, but after two months of shooting, Pratap suddenly came on board. He was already an established actor and it was fabulous working with him,” she begins, “He was a reluctant actor, so was I. He was more interested in literature and the technicalities of cinema, and I was a technician. So, it was kind of easy for me to get along with him. We became thick as friends.” She recalls her bond with Prathap “I think by that time, Kamal (Kamal Haasan) had acted with him in Balachander’s Varumayin Niram Sivappu and he was a regular visitor to our house. And we had such great evenings of chatting and laughing together. He and my dad were also great friends. He had a nickname for my father. Whenever he would say something sarcastic, Pratap would go, ‘Oh, it’s a Charuhaastic comment’. He also called him Century Haasan.” Pratap Pothen was a phenomenal actor who conquered the heart of South India with his acting and charisma. His demise indeed is a loss that cannot be compensated.