Kani Kusruti

Kani Kusruti is an Indian actress known primarily for her work in Malayalam films. She first gained recognition in 2009 with the film Kerala Cafe, in which her performance was critically acclaimed. Kani won the Best Actress at Kerala State Film Awards and the Best Actress Award at the Moscow International Film Festival for her performance in the film Biriyaani. She has since starred in the independent films All We Imagine as Light and Girls Will Be Girls (both 2024).

Early life and education Kani Kusruti was born in Cheruvakkal, a small village in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, to social activist parents Jayasree A. K. and Maitreya Maitreyan. Her parents had dropped their last names to erase the social hierarchy marker that comes with last names in India. At 15, she invented her last name "Kusruti" (meaning "mischievous" in Malayalam) to fill in a requirement in her class 10th exam application. She grew up in Thiruvananthapuram, where she got introduced to the Abhinaya Theatre Research Centre.

Kusruti later moved to Thrissur, where she enrolled in the theatre arts program at the Thrissur School of Drama between 2005 and 2007. She completed her theatre education at the L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq, where she studied physical theatre for two years.

Career At Abhinaya, Kusruti made her theatre debut in Baudhayana's classic farce Bhagavadajjukam. She played the lead role of Vasantsena in the production from 2000 to 2006. The play toured across theatre festivals, including the Bharat Rang Mahotsav and the International Theatre Festival of Kerala. She rendered the part of Kamala in M. G. Jyotish's stage adaptation of Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. In 2007, the production was invited to the Villeneuve en Scene Festival d'Avignon.

In 2009, after returning from her studies at L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq, She appears in the segment "Island Express", directed by Shankar Ramakrishnan.

In 2010, she played a Naxalite in the Mohanlal starrer Shikkar, but her nuanced rendition of a sex worker in the 2010 film Cocktail got her noticed by mainstream audiences.

In December 2010, Kani collaborated on creating 'Las Indias', a "mega performance event" directed by the thespian and theatre pedagogist Elias Cohen. The performance was staged in a bus, that was designed for the production. The Indo-Latin American theatre company, the Singing Sticks Theatre Ensemble evolved out of Las Indias. The bus that was originally created for Las Indias, was used once again for an interactive theatre roadshow 'Tsunami Express: Highway of Hopes', which Kusruti collaborated on making.

In 2011, Kani joined the renowned touring theatre company Footsbarn to work on a new production of Shakespeare's Tempest. She played Miranda in the resulting performance "The Indian Tempest". After touring Ireland, Spain, France, Portugal and India, the production opened at Shakespeare's Globe in 2013.

Kusruti researched, co-developed and acted in the Indo-Polish production 'Burning Flowers - 7 Dreams of a Woman', directed by Pawel Szkotak and produced by Teatr Biuro Podróży.

In 2015, Kusruti became a household presence with the soap opera Eswaran Sakshiyayi, directed by K. K. Rajeev. She played the part of Advocate Tresa, a lawyer who joins in on the investigation for her brother's murder.

Recognitions

2024 – Kusruti was a member of the jury at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival for its main competition section, "New Currents Award". 2025 – She was appointed as a member of the jury at the 78th Locarno Film Festival for Concorso Cineasti del Presente – Filmmakers of the Present Competition.

Awards and nominations + List of Kani Kusruti's awards and nominations

Rome Prisma Independent Film Awards Best Actress Counterfeit Kunkoo Kerala State Film Awards Kerala State Film Award for Best Actress Biriyaani 2020 BRICS Competition section in 42nd Moscow International Film Festival Best Actress Biriyani

Filmfare OTT Awards Best Actor (Female) – Comedy OK Computer Filmfare OTT Awards Best Actor (Female) – Popular awards OK Computer

67th Filmfare Awards South Best Actress: Critics Biriyani Hitlist OTT Awards Best Supporting Actor -Female OK Computer 2023 Critics’ Choice Shorts and Series Awards, India Best Supporting Actress Maharani Kusruti resides in Goa with her friends. She has publicly identified with feminist perspectives and has spoken on social and political issues, including gender equality and civil liberties. She has also criticised sexism in the Malayalam film industry.

Filmography Films

Year Title Role Language Notes 2003 Anyar Bus Passenger Malayalam Manushyaputhri Lakshmi Malayalam 2007 A Flowering Tree Amma Short film 2009 Kerala Cafe Zeba Segment: Island Express 2010 Shikkar Naxalite Cocktail Elsa 2011 Urumi Singer Silent Dark Eyes Woman English Short film 2012 Karmayogi Penn Jyothiyamma Malayalam 2013 Oru Indian Pranayakadha Police Commissioner North 24 Kaatham Lajjo Hotel California Guest role Natholi Oru Cheriya Meenalla Flat resident 2014 Masala Republic AGS Officer Pisaasu Angry husband's wife Tamil Burma Clara Tamil 2015 Padakkam Prostitute Malayalam Short film The Dolphins Varalakshmi Malayalam 2016 Kalam Housekeeper Tamil Memories of a Machine LadyMalayalamShort film 2017 Gi Gi Short films Thadayam Jenny Tamil Touch Selvi Spyder Sudalai/Bhairavadu's Mother TamilTelugu 2018 Maa Sathya Tamil Short film Theekuchiyum Panithulliyum Thanuja Malayalam The Notion Padma Iyer English Short film Counterfeit Kunkoo Smita Sunil Nikam Hindi, Marathi Short film 2019 Oolu Manasi Malayalam Biriyaani Khadeeja Malayalam 2020 The Discreet Charm of the Savarnas English Short film 2021 Tryst with Destiny Ahalya Hindi English 1956, Central Travancore Kela's wife Malayalam Vicks - Care Lives On Priyanka Bhosale Hindi Short film 2022 Super Sharanya Pedestrian Malayalam Cameo appearance Pada Sheeja P.K. Vichithram Martha Nishiddho Chaavi Vazhakku Sathi 2023 Kirkkan Farsana Rasheed 2024 All We Imagine as Light Nurse Prabha Girls Will Be Girls Mother Anila Hindi English Mura Asha Malayalam 2025 Ouseppinte Osyath Dhanya 2026 Assi Parima Hindi Malayalam

Television Year Title Role Language Notes 2015 Ishwaran Sakshiyayi Adv.Tresa Malayalam 2021 OK Computer Monalisa Paul Hindi Disney+ Hotstar Maharani Kaveri Sridharan Hindi SonyLIV 2024 Killer Soup Kirtima Kadathanathan Hindi Netflix Poacher DFO Dina Malayalam Amazon Prime VideoThalaimai Seyalagam Durga Tamil ZEE5 Original Series Nagendran's Honeymoons Thankam Malayalam Disney+ Hotstar