“I recently saw all my Tamil films and felt oh my god, with three kids I did succeed in maintaining the figure. No one could guess my age till I was 40. In 1970 I did a film for K Balachander, it was a dual role that of a mother and a daughter. A Japanese girl asked me who the daughter was and when I told them it was me, they did not believe it. My total involvement was full, I would choose my costumes and the seniors appreciated my individuality and character study. My costumes were controversial and I would wear sleeveless blouses. I knew how to dress for an occasion..there were people who admired it also. My father gave me a lot of independence and I was his pet.”

“My food shows became famous in 1995, I did shows for Gemini. Even the recently married couples took DVDs of my shows to try them out. Acting is a profession, cooking is a passion. I picked up the art from my mother and a little while travelling. If the food doesn’t taste good, I would rather starve then eat. Your body needs everything in reasonable proportion and you know when to stop and when to eat. I don’t compromise, I don’t diet, I love to feed people.”

“I would mingle and talk to all my colleagues. I had performed 100 shows for Balachander’s amateur group. I never had any role models, I came from the kitchen and became an actor. I lead a disciplined life and never get into a confrontational mode.I come from a very traditional family and except Telugu we wouldn’t speak anything at home. I turned 84 recently. My father was on a transferable job and I got married at 15. My husband left his job thinking my father would support him and we fell into financial problems. I studied in Durgabhai Deshmukh school. I was made to study Math, I am scared of Math and even now I am bad at math. My mom would support my sister Krishna Kumari a lot.” ..