The very mention of Subi Suresh may bring, to those familiar with her onstage work in Kerala, a lot of mirth and laughter. But Subi, the 42-year-old actor and entertainer who passed away on February 22, had begun as a dancer. More than two decades ago, she was discovered during a screen test, as someone with a sense of humour who could evoke easy laughter. She worked her way up through comedy shows, hosting and presenting television programmes, turning an actor in films, and continuing to entertain people on various platforms. Through all of it, she had kept the details of her liver disease under wraps, shocking people in Kerala when the news of her death came on Wednesday morning.
“Subi had appeared first as a dancer for a special show of Cinemala (a comedy programme which was hosted on Asianet for 20 years). But I could sense her taste in humour and asked her to join Cinemala as part of the cast,” says Diana Silvester, the creator and director of Cinemala, to TNM.
Subi was part of Cinemala for 13 of its 20 years. She was cooperative, and very dedicated, Diana says. “Although the programme was scripted, Subi would often exhibit glimpses of spontaneous humour. I have rarely seen such humour from women on screen.”
Watch: An old episode of Cinemala
Subi took her humour to the big screen when she became part of movies. Her first was in 2001, a film called Aparanmar Nagarathil, which featured many mimicry artistes. Subi had played one of the female leads in it. She appeared in several movies through the years — including Kanaka Simhasanam, Elsamma Enna Aankutty, Kaaryasthan, Happy Husbands, Detective and Panchavarnathatha — often appearing in comic roles. But she would have liked to play serious characters, she had once said in an interview.
Artistes who do comedy often get typecast like that, actor and comedian Ramesh Pisharody tells TNM. “It was Tini Tom who was instrumental in Subi switching to mimicry and comedy, after she began as a dancer. Then of course, Cinemala happened and she did several humour-related programmes. But she was also a good actor,” he says.
Watch: Subi in Elsamma Enna Aankutty
In acting and on stage, Subi was so passionate about her art that she would neglect her health issues and go to work, Diana says. “Subi was also very responsible, putting her family before anything else,” she adds.
In an interview she gave on Kaumudy Channel, Subi spoke about her family being her biggest priority, and she’d choose a partner who loved her and her family. Even in the video she put out on her YouTube channel six months ago, Subi spoke of her mother as the most important person in her life. In the video, she also mentioned her health issues that had kept her away from making new videos.
“I did not eat food or take medicines on time. When I got busy with programmes, I’d forget about all this, not because I went after money, but because I am very passionate about my work. I hadn’t taken care of my health, which resulted in my having some gastric issues. I was admitted to a hospital, and my magnesium, potassium, and sodium levels were low,” Subi said, with a smile on her face.
She would always break into laughter, in between her interviews or shows, even as serious questions were posed to her. To John Brittas’s questions about her personal life, she kept laughing even as Brittas kept insistently prodding her about her ‘bad phase after a breakup’. Subi, appearing very free and casual in interviews, still managed to keep her personal matters to herself, stating that she had been through relationships and then had mutual breakups.
Through everything, Subi remained active in her work. She formed friendships with others in the field. In an interview she did with actor Manju Pillai, another artiste known for her comic skills, Subi spoke of her as a sister, one of the few women she had been friends with. From the days she chose to study ‘break dance’ as a child, through her days in Kalabhavan as a mimicry artiste, Subi had mostly worked with men, since comedy was an area few women came to.
Artistes who worked in Cinemala / Courtesy - Diana Silvester / Facebook
Diana’s cover photo on Facebook shows a whole troupe of comedians including Subi, Ramesh and other artistes such as Dharmajan and Thezni Khan. Condolences and tributes poured in from comedians and actors, recalling Subi as someone they had fond memories of. Sajan Palluruthy, comedian and actor, shared her photo with him and wrote, “The artiste who has been there with me from the beginning of my art life. She was my little sister. My family and I cannot accept her loss.”
Veteran actor Mammukoya told Mathrubhumi News how Subi’s passing was a big loss to the field [of entertainment]. There are very few women who did comedy and she was at the forefront of it, Mammukoya said, adding that no one could handle children’s programmes the way Subi did.
Subi had hosted a children’s programme called Kutty Pattalam for years. Though it had run into controversy for having little children touch upon age-inappropriate topics, the way Subi handled the kids was appreciated. “Ramesh Pisharody would say that I do it so well because I think like a four or five year old. It is true,” she said, laughing during the Kaumudy interview.