She’s a charmer

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She’s the quintessential beauty who has only become more charming over the years. Sumalatha Ambareesh, the better half of Rebel-star Ambareesh, MLA of the Mandya constituency and the present Minister of Housing for Karnataka, scoffs at those who put up a show, just because of their status. “Pride is alien to my nature. One day you might be big and the next day you might not be recognised.”
But she’s not just an arm candy. Sumalatha who won a beauty contest from Guntur a month before she turned 16 on August 27, was flooded with offers to act in films. Today she has over 200 films in Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi to her credit. “When I won the beauty contest, I got offers from D Rama Naidu who has produced films in all Indian languages, but my family wanted me to pursue civil services. On the day of the muhurat of my first film there were so many offers. I got married a little later and took a break for a few years, as I didn’t want to miss out on my son Abhishek’s initial years. When he turned eight, I got back to acting. I now pick and choose films at my convenience. I’m off to London this week to drop Abhishek there for Masters in International Relations.”
We wonder how Sumalatha manages to stay calm with a husband who has a very demanding job and she confesses, “I do miss his presence on important functions, but I understand that he has to be here for his people and cannot accompany me. He has friends all over the world and is very good at organising. He’s the best example of someone who can think ahead. If I’m travelling, the moment I would reach my room, he would have already made all the arrangements. He has a very caring nature. Of course, now our family holidays are sporadic as he’s busy, but we have visited almost every part of the world in our earlier days.”
There’s an evident twinkle in her eye, as she reminisces on her last holiday. “Though we had been to Switzerland many years back, it was our recent Europe tour which will remain as my most cherished one. Since both of us lead hectic lives, it was nice to be all by ourselves in Rome and Venice. We walked around and stopped at pizzerias. Over the years, one stops communicating, but trips like these helps one bond.”
So does he also shower her with any diamonds, we prod and she blushes, saying, “I drop hints when I want diamonds. I love jewellery, but prefer to pick it up myself.”
After she returns, Sumalatha and Ambareesh will be seen acting in the film Ambareesha. “I also attend important functions and take out time to listen to the problems people have.”