Malayalam actor Rima Kallingal won the Golden Sparrow Award for best actor female at the Diorama International Film Festival, 2021, for her role in Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam.
The movie, directed by Don Palathara, is about a couple on their way to a clinic to confirm a suspected pregnancy. The 85-minute film is a single shot car ride to the medical facility. The movie also features Jitin Puthenchery and Neeraja Rajendran.
“It feels good to receive the award. It is kind of validation, reassurance that your work still matters and the effort that a team puts in has been recognised. This small group of people coming together and doing this film during COVID time shows how resourceful we are as artists,” said Kallingal in a press release.
“So many interesting movies with strong scripts came out in Kerala during the past two years and one of them is Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam. I am extremely proud of being part of a movie like that. Even though the award is for me, I feel the award is for us. Don, Jitin and me was such a small crew. Creatively, it was just the three of us who worked throughout the film from the word go to the last shot.”
Kallingal said playing the character of Maria was a very different experience and bit challenging as an artist as the movie was shot in a single take.
Don Palathara said the entire film was shot five times, with the fifth take being selected as the final product. The entire film process was equally difficult for the lead actors, with no cuts in between the take. “Rima understood the character pretty well and delivered a magnificent performance. She blended well into Maria’s character and conveyed the intended feelings.”
The movie was hailed by critics for its technical brilliance. Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam is available on OTT platforms, including Neestream, Cave, Roots, Saina Play, Mainstream, Filme and EventScape.