Kochi, India – If 2026 had to be defined by one actor in Indian cinema, Mamitha Baiju would be among the strongest contenders. The Kottayam native’s three hits this year—Jana Nayagan, Vishwanath & Sons, and Bethlehem Kudumba Unit—have collectively made her one of the highest-grossing stars of the year. In an exclusive interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Mamitha unpacked what has been a transformative year, discussing box-office success, back-to-back age-gap romances, and becoming a bona fide pop-culture fixture.
Speaking about signing two age-gap romances back-to-back with VaS and BKU, Mamitha explained that she heard the script of BKU almost three years ago and wanted to do it even then. “After hearing the script of VaS, I felt that it had a very different vibe from BKU. The age-gap romance is the common factor, but apart from that, the films have completely different stories, characters and vibes,” she said. On the sensitivity of the subject, she added, “Age-gap relationships are not something that feel foreign to me. I have seen examples of them in real life, and they exist around us and within our society. That made it easier for me to understand and connect with these stories.”
In both films, it’s the woman who takes the initiative in the romance, which Mamitha said she particularly enjoyed. “Both Maddy and Ashley are the ones who propose to the men they love. Usually, in Indian cinema, we often see the male character taking the initiative while the female character waits for him to express his feelings. But I don’t think love should work that way,” she said. Reflecting on working with Suriya and Nivin Pauly, she said, “Once you’re in front of the camera and someone says ‘Action,’ everything changes.
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You’re no longer thinking about the star in front of you; you’re simply playing your character.” On BKU becoming the highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time, she said, “When I choose a project, the first thing I look at is my character. Whether the film will be commercially successful or not is not something I put first.” She also revealed she will reunite with Pradeep Ranganathan as a producer in a Tamil film directed by six filmmakers, and has Hello, Dear in Malayalam.
