For Sudev Nair, joining Toxicwas less about weighing up an offer and more about keeping a long-awaited promise with Geetu Mohandas. He also explained how his early success shaped his approach towards choosing roles.The actor also shared why he said YES to Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups. “There wasn’t much of a decision involved. Geetu Mohandas had been telling me for years that we had to work together, from the time she watched the Thuramukhamrushes. People say that at screenings all the time and forget it by dinner. She actually called. When someone keeps a promise for that many years, you don’t sit there weighing your options”, revealed Sudev.
He shared that winning the Kerala State Award for his first Malayalam film – My Life Partner came with its own pressure, as the recognition arrived before he had the chance to prove himself. He added that the experience made him wary of safe choices and motivated him to take on roles that challenge him rather than repeat something he has already done.
Sudev Nair on his character Karmadi in Toxic
Sudev Nair has not revealed much about his character Karmadi, but he has shared three words that gives a small glimpse into his character. “Quiet. Watchful. Underestimated.” Rest, fans can see for themselves in the theatres what his role Karmadi is all about.
Sudev Nair on working with Yash in Toxic
Talking about his experience with Yash, Sudev highlighted the actor’s willingness to share what goes into his craft. He also recalled a memorable birthday celebration on the Toxicset and revealed the advice Yash gave him. He explained, “The thing that stays with me is that he doesn’t keep his craft to himself. He’ll tell you what he’s doing, why he’s doing it, where the traps are and how he gets around them. Only a genuinely secure person hands that over, and it’s much rarer than people assume. Plenty of stars are warm and accessible. That’s not the same thing as being generous with what actually makes you good.”
Sudev further revealed the best memory was his birthday on set. He said that his instinct in those situations was to shrink and keep it small, without making it anybody’s business. However, Yash did not allow him to do that. He made a whole thing of it in front of everyone and made sure that Sudev was celebrated.
He said, “Yash kept telling me to stop being apologetic about being good. I’d spent years being told the opposite by almost everybody, so hearing it from him rearranged something.”
How Geetu Mohandas shaped Sudev Nair’s approach to Karmadi?
Sudev revealed that Geetu Mohandas’s direction for Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups pushed him towards a more restrained approach to Karmadi. Instead of searching for big emotional moments, he had to focus on how the character carried himself on screen. He said that what he got instead was two years of somebody working on how he occupied a frame. He added that the style, ease, and charisma were all the things that made an actor watchable for the audience. Most of the directors treated that as either present or absent, but Geetu Mohandas treated it as something that could be built.
He explained, “The difference in approach with Karmadi is restraint. In earlier work, I’d have looked for the moment where the character opens up and shows you everything. Geetu kept steering me away from that. She wanted him held, and held, and held. It’s a much harder discipline than performing, and it changed how I think about the job. She’s still convinced she went easy on me, which is a separate argument I’ve stopped trying to win.”
While the physical preparation was not as difficult as one might expect, Sudev described the mental preparation for Toxic as the most demanding he has experienced. Geetu’s decision to give him the script in fragments meant he had to approach the character differently.
Sudev Nair reveals his biggest takeaway from Toxic
For Sudev Nair, his time on Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups set was not just about acting. He said watching Yash interact with everyone on the set changed the way he thinks about success and leadership. He revealed, “The bigger you get, the more room you make for everyone around you. I watched the biggest star in the country to make everyone on that set feel like an equal, every day, without ever announcing that he was doing it. Two years of that changes your idea of what success is supposed to look like.”