For Yogalakshmi, the fire to perform ignited early—and it burned bright enough to make her question the need for higher studies. But with her parents stepping in to ensure she fulfilled her academic responsibilities; she balanced both worlds before stepping into the one that truly called to her: cinema.

That unwavering passion hasn’t dimmed. She first won hearts across Tamil households with her earnest performance in the popular daily serial Singappenne, instantly becoming a familiar face on the small screen. But Yogalakshmi wasn’t one to stay in her comfort zone. She took a bold leap with her role in Heart Beat, a Hotstar Specials series, where her nuanced performance proved she could carry depth and complexity with equal grace.
Just as fans were anticipating the second instalment of Heart Beat, she surprised everyone with her delightful and emotional role in Tourist Family, starring alongside veterans Sasi Kumar and Simran. In an exclusive and candid conversation with us, Yogalakshmi opens up about her journey, her relentless love for acting, and even shares a side of Sasi Kumar that fans have never seen.

You had mentioned that you got a surprise call for a role in a TV serial. But before that, was it always to be an actor?
After I finished 12th grade, I told my family, “Appa, I’ve completed school. That’s enough for me. I’m going to do acting.” Acting has always been my ambition—how do I even explain it? Everyone has that one thing that gives them a sense of relief or peace. For me, it’s acting. I told them clearly, “I’ll pursue this after 12th.” But their reaction was, “Mariyathaiya oru degree mudichitu, enna vena pannu, Kambathu mela nada, enna vena pannu”—which basically means, “Finish a degree with some dignity, and then do whatever you want, even if it’s walking on ropes.

What flicked the switch in you? That one thing that made acting not just a dream, but a need?
I’ve always been a huge fan of Rajni sir and Kamal sir’s films. Watching them, I’d think to myself, “I want to be in films too.” It was those two legends who truly inspired me and sparked my love for acting. I especially love Superstar’s Thillu Mullu and Ulaganayagan’s Panchathanthiram—both are just iconic in their own way. And then there’s Mani Ratnam sir… oh my god, his films are something else. I do enjoy commercial cinema, but his storytelling is on a whole different level. Every character in his films has a purpose—no matter how small the role is, it always leaves an impact.

From daily TV to films—how do you adapt your craft for the bigger screen while keeping the rawness that made audiences love you in the first place?
Acting-wise, I did serials—and I’m still doing them. What I learned from that experience is that you can’t just act out of nowhere. It’s not just about acting—anything we take up, we only get better at it with practice, by doing it again and again. That’s something I really understood while working in serials. When you do something daily, it becomes second nature, right? Like, I’m a leftie—writing with my left hand comes naturally to me because I’ve been doing it for years. It’s the same with serials. I genuinely feel working in serials was a good thing. It helped me a lot with this film. It was a big advantage for me.

With serial, you were able to understand your character in depth, as you kept doing it over and over. But for this film, how did you manage to get into the skin of the character in a short duration?
In my opinion, narration is very important. It’s not just about reading the script—listening to the narration really matters. Only then can we truly understand the character and the emotions behind each scene. For Tourist Family, I listened to the director’s narration before reading the script.

You’ve had the incredible opportunity to share screen space with two Tamil cinema legends—Simran and Sasikumar. What were the biggest lessons or insights you gained from working with them?
It was my first film and I was really scared. I kept thinking, ‘How will Simran ma’am be? How will Sasi sir be?’ My very first shot was with Simran ma’am, and my hands were literally shivering. I was a bit anxious—she’s such a senior artist. The moment she arrived, everyone around was like, ‘Ma’am, ma’am, ma’am’. It was actually the first time I was seeing her in person. It felt a little overwhelming… but she turned out to be so sweet, which made things much more manageable.

Working with her taught me a lot about patience. She’s so calm and composed. She’s such a big star, but when she’s working, she does everything so subtly. From a distance, you might not even notice the expressions she’s giving, but when you watch it on screen, every tiny reaction stands out. I learned a lot from that. And beyond all that, she’s such a sweet person.

And Sasi sir—he’s honestly a cutiepie! If I had to put it in Gen Z terms, he’s a total pookie. Such a chellam, and genuinely a very sweet person. There’s so much to learn from him. What I really admired was that even though he’s such a big filmmaker, he never interfered in Abishan Jeevinth’s work. Abi’s a creator too, right? But Sasi sir didn’t step in or try to direct anything. He completely trusted him—like, “You do you, I trust you.” And that kind of trust, especially coming from someone like him, is a really big deal.

You started off with a successful film. You have the pressure to get it right in the next film, too, So, do you have any plan on setting your trajectory?
Honestly, I don’t have any set plan—it’s all just going with the flow right now. But my core intention is very clear: I want the audience to see me as one of their own. Like, “Hey, our girl has done this film, we should go support her.” That’s the kind of connection I hope to build. After Tourist Family released, I actually started getting that ‘girl next door’ appreciation. Even when I was watching the film in the theatre with the audience, someone said, “She’s like our girl.” I was so happy—I just turned around and said, “Thank you, ma. Please do watch the film.” I really loved that moment. I hope it continues like that. That’s truly my wish.

Can you share some exciting details about your upcoming projects?
As of now, there’s Heartbeat Season 2 coming up. Apart from that, I’ve been listening to a lot of scripts—some of them are really good. So yes, I’ll be coming back soon with a very good film!