Ramya at 31: Actress-turned-youngest MP

A pictorial bouquet to Ramya 

Whether it’s films, her volatile relationship with her co-stars, political views or her personal life, Divya Spandana aka Ramya is, without doubt, controversy’s child.

As she turns 31 on November 29, Kannada actress and politician Ramya has the distinction of being the youngest Member in the current Parliament, representing Karnataka’s Mandya constituency.  Her nomination in the assembly by-poll earlier this year took political observers by surprise. For, while the actress joined the Youth Congress in 2011, she continued to be busy with her film career and hadn’t been too politically active

Her first step into the electoral fray turned out like a scene from a film for Ramya; minutes after she filed her nomination, her foster father, R T Narayan, collapsed after a massive heart attack and passed away. A grieving Ramya hit the campaign trail, while the opposition went on a mud-slinging spree, questioning her parentage. The actress won by a margin of 45,000-plus votes, and some sections attributed it to a sympathy wave.

Shedding the glamour she exuded in films and on the page 3 circuit, Ramya assumed the role of young politician and entered parliament.  It seemed like bye-bye to films. “Other actors enter politics when their film careers are waning, but I’m still on top,” Ramya said in a newspaper interview.  She indicated also that it was the possible end of her film career.  “As an MP I can’t be seen running around trees in short skirts,” she said.

Ramya’s decision to quit acting sent producers who had signed her and whose films were unfinished into a tizzy.  Earlier this month, she allotted a few days for the Shivrajkumar film ‘Aryan’ to finish her talkie portions.  But the team of ‘Neerdose’, particularly it’s hero, Jaggesh, have gone to the media, accusing Ramya of letting them down. Last heard, the actress-MP has agreed to complete the film, but whenever she finds the time.

In her decade-long career in South Indian films – she made her debut with the Kannada film ‘Abhi’ in 2003 – Ramya has had several run-ins with industry folks.  There was a very public spat with the producer of her 2011 film, ‘Dhandam Dashagunam’ after which a frustrated Ramya had announced she was quitting Kannada films.  Her volatile relationship with co-star Sudeep during the making of ‘Just Maath Maathalli’ also made news. Ramya has also taken on choreographers and, most recently, some film journalists for taking photos of her without permission.

While some say the actress is impetuous, she prefers to see herself as outspoken and forthright. Despite the troubles she’s had in Sandalwood, Ramya has done good enough work to be described as the ‘Golden Girl of Kannada Films’. She’s won ‘Best Actress’ awards for ‘Amruthadhaare’, ‘Thananam Thananam’ and, more recently, the 2011 film ‘Sanju Weds Geetha’ which was a commercial hit as well. ‘Mussanje Mathu’ and ‘Sidlingu’ were her other notable performances.

In other languages, Ramya made her debut in Tamil in ‘Kutthu’, earning her the nickname ‘Kutthu Ramya’ and went on to feature in ‘Polladhavan’, opposite Dhanush, in which she also reverted to her original name Divya Spandana. She featured also in Gautham Menon’s sentimental ‘Vaaranam Aayiram’ and the 2011 film ‘Singam Puli’.

At 30-plus, Ramya is single and is, according to the gossip columns, dating Portuguese guy, Raphael.  Rumours of impending marriage keep cropping up, too, but Ramya is dismissive of them. She’s had several not-so-private relationships in the past as well.  With no time for films, we’ll have to wait and see when she finds time for marriage, in the midst of her political career.

“In my life, nothing I planned happened,” Ramya said in a recent interview to The Times of India. As actress, politician and girl about town, Divya Spandana aka Ramya, certainly has a life that’s not in the least bit ordinary. Here’s wishing her a very happy 31st birthday!