Lijomol Jose interview: ‘Jai Bhim’ gave me the confidence to be an actor

The actor talks about her journey in films, from ‘Maheshinte Prathikaaram’ to ‘Unmadham,’ with ‘Jai Bhim’ and ‘Ponman’ in between

Updated - August 08, 2026 01:29 pm IST

Lijomol Jose | Photo Credit: THULASI KAKKAT

Lijomol Jose cannot make up her mind about whether she is an accidental actor or a reluctant one. She bursts out laughing as she says , “I don’t know…maybe a reluctantly accidental actor?” As Unmadham reaches theatres today, the self-confessedly ‘extremely introverted’ actor is doing a flashback on what led her to a career in films.

Best known among her roles are those in films like Jai Bhim and Ponman, apart from her debut film Maheshinte Prathikaaram (2016).

Steffi in Ponman was a breakout of sorts. The 2025 film, inspired by GR Indugopan’s novel Naalanchu Cheruppakaar and directed by Jothish Sankar, gave her space to prove her acting chops. Pitched against Basil Joseph, Lijo was noticed for her portrayal of the brusque and no-nonsense Steffi, whose motto seemed to be self-preservation at any cost.

Tamil and Malayalam films like Kattapanayile Ritwik Roshan, Honey Bee 2.5, Sivappu Manjal Pachai, Her, Baby Girl, and Nadanna Sambhavam are some of her other films over the past ten years as an actor. She fetched the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actress for Jai Bhim and the Kerala State Film Award for Best Character Actress for Nadanna Sambhavam.

Lijomol Jose and Kunchacko Boban in ‘Unmadham’ | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

In Unmadham, she plays Saumya, wife of Shelly, a cop played by Kunchacko Boban. She has to step in when her husband is faced with certain challenges. “Saumya maintains the balance in their relationship. All relationships are not equal at all times, sometimes the other person has to step in and she is that person,” says Lijomol.

It is another serious role, along the lines of Ponman, Baby Girl and a few recent ones — the kind of characters that carry immense emotional load. “Initially, when I heard the story, I told the makers that this was great. I didn’t have to be sad and weepy. However, I spoke too soon… I cry in Unmadham too! The only time I am smiling is in one place; I don’t know if it is in the film,” she says, laughing.

Basil Joseph and Lijomol Jose in ‘Ponman’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Lijo almost bid goodbye to her career in films when, post-Maheshinte Prathikaaram and Kattapanayile Ritwik Roshan, she was getting similar roles. She was preparing to write JRF and NET exams so that she could qualify as a teacher, which is when she was offered the Tamil film Jai Bhim, directed by TG Gnanavel and starring Suriya.

“At the time, I could do that because I did not want to be typecast. Today, I cannot just take a break, making this the reason! I will just have to wait for some story that will make me smile onscreen…”

She is happy that performance-oriented roles are coming her way, and that she is one of the actors being considered for such roles but now she wants more. Lijo wants to be part of light-hearted films which would make the audience laugh and leave them happy. “But I am not the kind who will ask for a role or to be considered for a role. I am too much of an introvert to do that and it is probably not the best way to be but that is who I am.”

It is ironic because Lijo seems like a happy, always-smiling kind of person.

Listening to her narrate the story of her first audition for Maheshinte Prathikaaram, of how she wanted leave, of how she asked the team to schedule her shooting around her semester exams, and how she refused to tell people that she was the actor in that film…it is a laugh riot. Then there are the Jai Bhim and Ponman stories. She tells these stories animatedly, giving the sense that this is an actor who is committed to her craft.

“It was Jai Bhim that gave me the confidence that I could be an actor, that I could make a career out of films.” Prepping for the film was hard work, Lijo had to literally become her character, Sengeni, a tribal woman.

A ‘Jai Bhim’ poster | Photo Credit: Special arranagement

She lived and worked among Irula tribal people, walked barefoot and wore a sari constantly, learnt to think in Tamil so that she could speak better in the language. Once the film was done, she could not get out of the character for a while, says Lijo. “I don’t think a film has demanded so much of me since or even before.” The film also got her a slew of awards and offers from Malayalam cinema, which seemed to have forgotten about her.

From Library Sciences to acting

Maheshinte Prathikaaram was demanding in another way, because acting was never part of the plans for the Mass Communication graduate studying for her post-graduate degree in Library Sciences. It was on a suggestion from a friend that she responded to a casting call for the film. To this day, she does not know why she did what she did.