Amala Paul awaits the release of the thriller 'Aame' ('Aadai' in Tamil) on July 19. In this interview, the actress talks about her role in the movie, why she lapped it up, what kind of films she wants to do, her upcoming projects and more.

Looking for strong, new content

I am doing films that are content-oriented and where I have the scope to perform. Rarely do such scripts happen. 'Mahanati' of Keerthy Suresh is one such film. I am keeping myself busy in Tamil and Malayalam. I am open to all industries but the story shouldn't be cliched. If it is a heroine-centric film, it's mostly about women empowerment, you are shown as a powerful character who faces injustice, etc. These are all old. I am looking for something new.

Money is not the priority

Every actor goes through a phase. After my hit 'Mynaa', big offers came to me. I didn't know how to handle things. Once you know how to handle things and you come of age, you want to do mature films. I don't want to do films for money and go back. I want to try to at least change the world through cinema, the industry, the way cinema is conceived. Films like 'Pad Man' would be great. It's not like I want to do only arty films. Even if there is no message, it has to be experimental.

Not vulgar but artistic

'Aame' is a new attempt. The entire film was shot using live sound technique. The story has nudity in it and the biggest challenge was to be within the boundaries. There is a thin line and you can't cross it and seem vulgar. There is not a single cleavage scene in the film. There is nothing in the film that is cringey. It's all artistic. We are honest to the story without seeming vulgar anywhere.

Kamini is grey

It's a courageous movie and the first movie of this director was a big hit. I really liked the honesty in the story. He is clear about what he wants to show, avoiding stereotypes. The female lead is not black or white. Kamini is grey. She is crazy, eccentric, weird, selfish and unapologetically herself. Kamini used to be what I used to be some years ago. I have calmed down much because of Yoga. I used to take myself too seriously, and was too competitive. I enjoyed playing the role for this reason.

Workshops for nudity

I had to be really comfortable with the team because of the nudity involved. S, workshops had to be held. The entire team had to be on the same page. Kamini is in her early 20s. She is a working girl, she mingles and is on the roads. So, I walked on the roads, shopped my own costumes to acquaint myself with Kamini's swag, thinking, etc.

Growing with films

I have a market, I have space. I want to use them to tell stories that have some meaning. I like to do different things. I give 6-7 months for each movie. I grow as a person year after year. I want to grow with my films. I want to be more choosy right now. Most of our movies are not in sync with social currents. They play to the gallery and stereotype the female leads. Many women are independent and fierce. This is a millennial generation. We are not the same 1980s society.

Upcoming projects

I am doing a Telugu-Tamil bilingual apart from an actioner in Tamil. The bilingual is my first film as a producer. The Telugu version is titled 'Bhadram' and I do martial arts in it. It was a very good experience to learn martial arts for this film. It's a survival story that is set in a jungle. We have shot in real locations. There are amazing directors in Telugu and I want to work with them. Rajamouli sir, Nandini Reddy garu are two of the people I want to work with. I totally loved 'Jersey' and 'Mahanati'.