On her birthday, a look back at the last-minute casting call that gave Malavika Mohanan one of the most powerful roles of her career — and put her opposite an all-India crew working with a legendary Iranian filmmaker for the first time.
Some roles make a career. Others quietly redefine an actor forever. For Malavika Mohanan, that role came from a director she barely had time to prepare for — and a phone call that changed everything with just two weeks to spare.
As the actress turns a year older on August 4, it’s worth revisiting the film that many still consider the finest work of her career: Beyond the Clouds, directed by acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi.
A Call That Left No Time to Think
Long before blockbusters like The Raja Saab put her in front of mass audiences, Malavika was a young actor still finding her way in the industry. Then came an offer most performers only dream about — a lead role in a film by an internationally celebrated, Oscar-nominated director.
The catch? She wasn’t the first choice. She was, in fact, the last actor cast for the project, brought on board barely two weeks before the cameras started rolling.
In comments to Siasat.com, Malavika described the whirlwind that followed her casting, saying the news barely had time to sink in before she threw herself entirely into preparation — including spending time at Mumbai’s Dhobi Ghat to understand her character’s world firsthand.
The Story Behind Beyond the Clouds
Released in 2018, Beyond the Clouds premiered at the BFI London Film Festival and went on to open the International Film Festival of India in Goa — a rare honour for a Hindi-language independent drama. Written and directed by Majidi, best known worldwide for films like Children of Heaven and The Color of Paradise, it marked his first project shot entirely outside Iran.
The film follows two estranged siblings navigating love, guilt and survival in Mumbai’s underbelly. Malavika played Tara, an elder sister who sacrifices her own freedom to protect her younger brother Amir — a role that gave Ishaan Khatter his first major lead performance. When Tara is wrongfully imprisoned, the story splits into two intertwined arcs: her fight to survive behind bars, and Amir’s reluctant journey toward responsibility as he cares for the family of the man responsible for his sister’s downfall.
It’s a story about forgiveness and the unbreakable pull of family — heavy, unglamorous, and a world away from typical mainstream Hindi cinema.
Becoming Tara
Playing a washerwoman fighting to survive prison life required more than technique — it demanded emotional immersion. With only two weeks before shooting began, Malavika spent time observing life at Dhobi Ghat, one of Mumbai’s most iconic open-air laundries, to understand the physical and emotional texture of her character’s world.
That preparation paid off. Critics singled out her restrained, deeply felt performance as one of the standout elements of the film — a far cry from the glossy, commercial roles typically offered to young actresses at that stage of their careers.
A Landmark Collaboration
Beyond its emotional weight, Beyond the Clouds was historically significant for another reason: it was Majid Majidi’s first feature made entirely outside Iran, and it brought together an extraordinary mix of talent. A.R. Rahman composed the music, Vishal Bhardwaj wrote the dialogues, and Anil Mehta handled the cinematography — a rare meeting point between some of Iran’s and India’s finest creative minds.
More Than a Glamorous Leading Lady
Malavika had already made her acting debut in 2013 opposite Dulquer Salmaan in the Malayalam romance Pattam Pole, but it was Beyond the Clouds that proved she could carry an emotionally demanding, non-commercial role with real conviction.
Years later, Tara remains one of her most talked-about characters — not for spectacle, but for the quiet vulnerability and resilience she brought to the part.
What’s Next
Malavika was most recently seen in the Telugu horror-comedy The Raja Saab opposite Prabhas, and made a cameo appearance in the Tamil film Idhayam Murali alongside Fahadh Faasil. Ahead of her lies an interesting slate, including the much-anticipated Sardar 2 and Pocket Novel.
But on her birthday, fans may find themselves circling back to Beyond the Clouds — the film that didn’t just introduce them to Tara, but to an actress capable of far more than her glossy on-screen image suggested.
