Tamil-Canadian actor Jereen Ignatius plays the lead role, Roshni, in the Canadian production, 'Shadows of the Past', which premiers at the International Film Festival of South Asia (IFFSA) on October 18th at 6:30pm Cineplex Cinemas Courtney Park, Mississauga. It is directed by Allen Thomas, one of the top 3 Talent Fund recipients at IFFSA, the film is co-produced by IFFSA. 

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Jereen, introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a professional actor based in Canada. I was born in Kilinochchi and grew up and studied in Jaffna before migrating to Canada in my early teens. I was previously a software engineer but felt the need to work more closely with people. This led me to transition into social work, and I eventually moved to Thunder Bay to pursue a Bachelor's in Social Work. I then worked at a mental health association in Stratford, Ontario, for about a year.

In 2015, I visited India for what was meant to be a short trip, but it turned into a five-year journey exploring a career in acting. I appeared in about 10 films in the Tamil film industry. Seethakathi was my last movie, where Vijay Sethupathi played the title role, and I portrayed his elder daughter. My other notable films include Kaala, Magalir Mattum and Aandavan Kattalai. I also participated in numerous street plays and theatre productions in India, which solidified my decision to pursue acting as a full-time career. I have been represented by Premier Artists Management since 2001. 

Tell us about your childhood and early sparks of interests in the arts?  

I grew up completely surrounded by war, where schools were often closed. When the Indian Army occupied the North and East, I remember walking all the way from Jaffna to Kilinochchi as a child. On Christmas Day, when I was about 11 or 12, I was at my aunt’s house when it was completely bombed. It was a miracle that I survived that incident. So, I grew up during this dark period. However, I was always involved in the arts, primarily through the Church or school, where I participated in cultural activities. Tamil was my favorite subject.

When I came to Canada in grade 9, I didn’t know a word of English, and the following years were focused on survival rather than pursuing my interests. I still remember choosing computer science because, first, I didn’t need to know much English, and second, it offered a lucrative career path that would allow me to support my parents.

To keep the artist within me alive, I worked part-time at CMR Thamil FM and TVI, and got involved in community theatre, among other activities. But it was my visit to India that changed everything. My husband has been incredibly supportive throughout, especially when I decided to pursue acting full time. I didn’t know what would happen in India either, but the fire inside me pushed me to take the plunge.

Tell us about your experience as an outsider, getting into the Tamil film industry in Chennai?

It wasn’t easy. I started with the theatre company, Chennai Kalai Kulu. I didn’t previously know these companies but heard about them during my visit to India.  I went to the director and said I'm from Canada and I'm interested in being part of your group and want to travel with you.  He gave me one line in my first play, Payanam.  Through the events I attended, I got to know the theatre company Medai. 

In India, to get your first gig, 99% of the time, it's about who you know or you become popular through social media, which grabs the attention of a director. I had neither. I was a complete outsider. So for someone to place trust in me was very difficult. The challenge in the Tamil film industry in Chennai is that once you pass the mid twenties, if you are not a known actor, you are considered as an older person. I was in my early 30s, so I wasn’t considered for lead roles. I have a lighter skin tone and I kept hearing that my face doesn’t have a ‘Dravidian’ look. If you are trying for heroine roles, these wouldn't have mattered. But for character roles it did.  Another challenge for me, going from Canada, was that their perception of me was that I may be pursuing this as a hobby, wanting to take a picture with a popular artist, post it on social media, get those thousands of likes and become popular that way.  

Eventually I got small parts., purely through attending events, networking, emailing or calling people. I completely put myself out there, worked really hard and faced many rejections. Mind you, I also have to put my safety into consideration as well.  I went for a book release and that’s where I got an introduction to director Myshkin. I went up to him and said  ‘I'm an actor from Canada, I want to talk to you' and luckily he said 'Okay’. That’s how I got a small part in Thupparivaalan. 

Now, once you leave India, it’s hard to stay in touch. But I try my best to do so and I am planning to go there early next year. But I wouldn’t be staying there for a long time because now what’s happening in the industry is that even the character roles are allocated for popular actors from the 90s and 2000s, who are making a comeback. 

But one thing I would say is, once you have your breakthrough in the industry, the Tamil film industry embraces you like no other. 

You’ve worked with some of the big names in the Tamil film industry; Vijay Sethupathi, Pa. Ranjith, Mari Selvaraj, Rajinikanth to name a few. What are some of the key lessons you’ve learned from these veterans?

With Rajnikanth, observing on the sets of Kaala, he prepares on set and asks for feedback. He doesn’t take anything for granted even after reaching such heights. Some big actors do not prefer doing rehearsals, but with Vijay Sethupathi, he was kind and open to it and we did few rehearsals before doing the actual take. It was the down to earth nature of such big stars that stood out for me.

With Pa.Ranjith, I spent almost 50 days on set and got to know him well. There are still many teams where popular artists are treated differently compared to the other cast and crew. With him, everyone was equal. I remember him  instructing his associates that everyone should be treated equally. So these are things I’ve observed and admired a lot.

Now that you are fully based in Toronto, what is the advantage of being an artist here?

In Chennai I had to depend on people for opportunities even if it's for a small part. But in Toronto I could position myself not just as an actor but as a creator especially with theatre.  Secondly it is about learning my craft. In India the learning is less if you are doing minor characters in movies.  But here, there are a lot of resources. I live in Stratford, so I don't have much access to in-person classes, but I have opportunities to learn online.

For South Asians there aren't a lot of opportunities wiin the mainstream mediums, and even the ones you get, are stereotypical roles. Some of these roles require speaking in an Indian accent. It’s frustrating because they fail to realize that there is a wide spectrum of immigrants that don’t speak with an Indian accent.  Also, do all immigrants speak with an accent? And why is it that we are always cast as immigrants in these productions?

But I would encourage Tamil artists to start writing original content. Because I get a lot of auditions for Hindi based productions here, but I don't speak Hindi, so I lose on that end as well. So I will push my fellow filmmakers and creators to write more, be it web series, stories that represent us, Tamils. Diaspora stories, which I am observing, are getting a lot of traction in  mainstream spaces. We have the immense opportunity to create here compared to Chennai and we should utilize it!

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How did the title role in ‘Shadows of the Past’ come to you? 

It was certainly luck. The casting call was posted on social media and I auditioned for the protagonist role, Roshni. Roshni, is a Personal Support Worker, who has rebuilt her life in Canada after fleeing war-torn Sri Lanka as a refugee where she encounters a terminally ill man tied to her darkest memories. She faces an agonizing choice: seek revenge or offer compassionate care in his final days.

Till the last minute the team was debating on casting me versus another Malayali actor.  I pushed the team to cast me as I was afraid that another actor may not do justice to the role. Secondly I believed strongly that I would be able to convey the essence of what this role required, as it is part of my lived experience.  

Was director Allen Thomas, a Malayalee - Canadian, able to do justice to this story?

Allen was inspired by the stories shared by his close friends and colleagues who were Sri Lankan Tamils and felt compelled to bring this narrative to life. Coming from a different cultural background, he did face the challenge of immersing himself into these stories while carrying the responsibility of doing justice to it. His goal was to explore the complex nature of human emotions and the intricate layers of trauma, identity, and resilience that shape these lives.  For me as a survivor of the war, I have a particular perspective and I get fearful when people who have no lived experiences try to tell such narratives. It was also part of the reason why I truly wanted to be part of this film as I felt I would be able to guide him and the team. I believe he did a fabulous job of honoring these experiences.

Were there moments during the film-making process where you had to deal with your own past/trauma?

Yeah, absolutely. I think after becoming an actor, I became even more sensitive because you get into people's core emotions. My role in this film is dealing with this man who’s linked to my dark past. This role is played by a Tamil person and I ensured that I didn't even talk to him on the set because if I did, I would lose that rigid grip. I drew a lot from my own experiences, for example my godfather, a farmer, was killed in broad daylight. So I will recall these incidents, but at the same time I had to hold back, practice restraint.  

And I remember for one particular scene, after multiple takes,  I wouldn't talk to anybody and when the take was done, I just broke down and I hugged my director because it was so painful. But you know what? I still have trauma. But coming from a social work background has helped me with coping with these emotions better. I know that I will never be healed. I can never be healed. But this work, it could never be a therapy, but it can be therapeutic. I know that this story is going to be watched and it gives me a sense of relief that I'm being heard.

What’s next for you Jereen?

This film is doing a festival round at the moment. Starting with IFFSA, the film has also been selected for the Nepal Cultural International Film Festival and the NFR Kochi International Film Festival (Director Vetrimaran is part of the grand jury for the Kochi festival). 

As for me, I am currently writing a play, inspired by true events from 2009,  about a woman who escapes the war in Sri Lanka and arrives on Canadian shores by a boat, as a refugee. As part of the last generation with firsthand experiences of the war, I feel a profound urgency to share these stories with the younger generation. The significant absence of representation of this Tamil community's narratives in Canadian theatre makes this play essential to fill the gap and lend a hopeful voice to many similar untold stories. An initial draft of the script has been completed with the support of the Ontario Arts Council. The next step is to do a production workshop in the summer of 2025.

Also, I’m currently involved in the theatre production 'Spiderella' at Perth Community Theatre in Stratford. Next year, I’ll be traveling to India to complete an independent film directed by a renowned filmmaker in Chennai.

TC Bits:

1. A memory from the part which you would like to re-live? The time I spent with my Ayya, grandfather, in Jaffna. 

2. A film other than yours you are looking forward to watching at the IFFSA? ‘All we imagine as light’ by Payal Kapadia.

3. A Tamil film that you hold near and dear? 80s Tamil films. Magalir Mattum comes to mind. 

4. A role in a Tamil film that you are envious about? Any role played by Revathy, especially Mouna Ragam.

5. An artist or creator that you are hoping to work with in the future? Sudha Kongara & Pa.Ranjith

6. A performance of yours you are proud of? Roshni in Shadows of the Past

7. A Tamil quirk that you have? Love to eat with my hands, mix all the rice and curries and then lick my fingers once I am done!

8. Your go-to Tamil comfort food? Kool

9. What does being Tamil or TamilCulture mean to you? It’s evolved and it's evolving. My motto in life is to take the best from the East and the West live with it. And I believe Tamil gives you that space to do so.  It is also the ancient knowledge, whether it's language, or way of living with nature. That's Tamil and that’s me.