HIMANSHU GURU, OP
The glamour industry in Orissa has developed a lot over the years. These days, many Oriya girls, keen to make a career in the glamour world, are earning applause and awards in beauty pageants both at the state and national levels. SumanKhillo, a second year student at the National Institute of Fashion Designing (NIFD) in Bhubaneswar, recently won the title of “Miss Pretty” in a beauty contest. Suman has also acted in a Tamil film as well as in a few plays. Orissa POST chatted with the young girl about her journey in the glamour world.
Born to Brundabati and Narayan Khillo of Semiliguda in Koraput district, Suman completed CBSE Higher Secondary course from the Netaji English Medium School and then earned a Diploma in mechanical engineering from SCITM, Semiliguda. Later, she joined Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Koraput as an apprentice mechanical engineer. However, she found a career in engineering was not her cup of tea and moved to Bhubaneshwar last year to join NIFD for the Bachelor in Fashion Designing course. Suman’s father is a government employee and mother is a nurse. She has a younger brother, Subham.
“When I was in Class VI I used to cut my mom’s saris to wear them fashionably. In school, I took part and won many dance competitions,” Suman reminisces. Asked about her expertise in dance, she says, “I am proficient in the Dhemsa style, the typical folk dance of Koraput. Though I am not a trained dancer, I am a competent dancer in the Sambalpuri and Bollywood styles.”
Speaking about her foray in theatre, Suman says, “When I was pursuing my Diploma I acted in a few plays. I attended a drama workshop for six months in Koraput, and this short course gave me the chance to act in two popular plays titled ‘Purnapurusha’ and ‘Madhusudan Nanda Bayasa 78.’ In ‘Purnapurusha,’ I played the lead role, the character of Saswati. She is passionate about materialistic gains and is not satisfied with her hubby, a painter, for whom art is everything. In ‘Madhusudan Nanda Bayasa 78,’ which dealt with the plight of senior citizens, I played the role of the narrator. Presented by Mukti theatres, both these plays were staged at Bhanja Kala Mandap in Bhubaneswar and earned much appreciation. I am associated with the Theatre Odisha drama group of Koraput headed by eminent theatre director Biswaranjan Kanungo. I have also acted in a short film titled ‘It’s My Lifestyle’ that deals with the importance of parents.”
As for her experience in fashion designing, she says, “I designed costumes and choreographed the children’s play ‘Bhuta Nagari,’ a fantasy presented by the theatre group ‘Udbhav’ in Koraput. The play showcased funny tricks of ghosts to frighten humans though in vain.”
After acquiring a Diploma in engineering, Suman got a chance to act in a Tamil film in Chennai. “I came to know about the audition of a Tamil film titled ‘Mandhira Vizhigal’ from social media. Just to confirm that it was genuine, I asked my cousin, who was living in Chennai. After he confirmed that it was genuine, I went for the audition and was selected to play the female lead. A triangular love story is at the core of this murder mystery-cum-horror film directed by Tamil Harsu. The film will be released in Tamil and Telugu. The shooting of the film is over.”
Asked how she managed to deliver the dialogues in Tamil, Suman said, “Since Koraput is adjacent to Andhra Pradesh, the people of this district know Telugu. Accordingly, I delivered the dialogues in Telugu as this is a bilingual film.”
Suman lived in Chennai for about a year and took part in many modelling shows. She then returned to Koraput and worked as an apprentice in HAL.
Subsequently, she joined the bachelor’s degree course in fashion designing in Bhubaneshwar and started participating in beauty contests. Last year, she won the title of ‘Miss Support.’ More recently, she won the ‘Miss Pretty’ beauty pageant organised by Odisha Fashion Villa. “I came to know about the contest while in college and decided to take part. There were twelve finalists in this contest,” she says.
Suman is an ardent fan of Hindi film actors, Deepika Padukone and Shabana Azmi. “I was captivated by Shabanaji in the films ‘Mandi’ and ‘Masoom.’ And, I like how Deepika gets deep into the skin of her characters,” she says.
Asked about her future plans, Suman replies, “After completion of my degree in fashion designing, I will return to Koraput to start a business in textiles. A business will provide employment to a lot of people. I want to do something for my own people.”
At the same time, Suman has another goal too. “My dream is to become a successful actor,” says the talented young girl.