A Writer And His Words' Worth

AS an actor, Poovai Dhayanidhi feels accomplished. When this contentment took over him fully, Dhaya, as he is fondly known, felt that he had a lot to contribute as a writer.

- KV VASUDEVAN

The writing bug had already bitten him when he used to assist his father, Poovai Senguttuvan, who had penned scores of books in all forms, besides being a movie lyricist, known for his catchy lines in scores of MGR hits.

Around 700 stage shows in Tamil theatre are an apt reflection of the sway Dhaya had on his admirers as an actor. "I had a strong penchant for comedy, and interspersing that in serious plays, gave a different sheen to the end product."

In the 80s, serious plays had a strong audience. "I was happy to play my part in any troupe, which ensured a range of characters with little restriction on the age limit. Matured roles invariably brought the best out of me. That was an era where women characters had a lot of respect in the way they were depicted. That was a strong reason for me to branch out as a writer with any number of opportunities coming my way," he shares.

Dhaya fondly remembers En Nenjam Unakkaga, his first social play as a writer, where the late cine actor SS Chandran played the lead role with telling perfection. To this day, Dhaya believes that it was Chandran's dialogue delivery that was the clinching factor for the play to draw a repeat audience. "Handling the story and dialogues gave me an impetus to try out my brand of storytelling. Gauging the audience response helped in getting skin deep into the characters in future plays," he adds.