Kanika and Jayaram pair for Anthikkad's film

Popular Tamil actress Kanika (also spelt Kanika) has been roped into don the central character opposite Jayaram for an untitled Malayalam film by ace director Sathyan Anthikkad. She is currently shooting in Mollywood's much-anticipated historical magnum opus Pazhassi Raja, directed by Hariharan starring superstar Mammootty in the lead, in which she plays a queen named Kaitheri Makkom.

Produced by M.M. Hamza under the banner of Kala Sangham, this untitled film is about a Christian family residing in Kuttanad area. Sathyan Anthikkad has already completed the script and is expected to begin shooting by the end of January. Also in the cast are Mamukoya, Innocent, Nedumudi Venu, K.P.A.C. Lalitha and others. Maestro Ilayaraja will set tunes for the movie which is planned to hit screens on May 1st.

Debuting in Tamil cinema with Five Star (2002) directed by Susi Ganesh and produced by ace director Mani Ratnam, Kanika, the former Miss Madurai (1999) and runner-up in Miss Chennai (2001), has already acted in all South Indian languages, making her a truly southern spice actress. Her notable films are Ajith starrer Varalaru, Cheran's Autograph and its Telugu version Naa Autograph, actor Madhavan's Aethiree and Kannada film Sye (a remake of Tamil movie Dhill). She made her entry into Malayalam in 2006 with a campus flick, Ennittum.

Kanika's sweet voice enabled her entry into playback singing and dubbing. She sang the theme song of her debut movie Five Star and dubbed for actress Genelia in Sachein, for Sada in Anniyan and for Shreya in Sivaji: The Boss. She recently married Shyam Radhakrishnan, an US-based software engineer and brother of yesteryear heroine Jayashree Chandrasekar.