Malayalam actor Tovino Thomas has often spoken about the importance of family in his life. Long before becoming one of Mollywood’s leading stars, he grew up in a traditional Kerala home in Irinjalakuda.In an earlier interview with On Manorama, the ‘Lokah’ actor opened up on the memories that continue to make his childhood home special.Looking back, Tovino described his house as a place filled with warmth, laughter and sibling rivalry.
‘Our favourite space as kids’
Recalling his childhood, Tovino said, “Ours was a typical old-school Kerala house with tiled roof in Irinjalakuda. In those days, my siblings and I had just one room to ourselves. Then the house was renovated and we got our own rooms. There was an armchair in the TV room, which was our favorite space as kids. My brother, sister and I were always fighting for this chair.”
How marriage brought life back home
Tovino also spoke about how the atmosphere inside the house changed over the years. After his brother and sister got married and moved away, the once lively home became much quieter.Sharing those memories, he said, “Once my brother and sister moved away with their families after marriage, the house fell quiet. Things changed again after my marriage. My wife Lidiya and our daughter Isa brought life back to our house. Isa is the darling of the house now.”
The feeling of missing home
The ‘Pallichattambi’ actor also revealed that he found it difficult to stay away from home during his younger years. He admitted that homesickness followed him through school tournaments and even during the early days of his engineering studies.He recalled, “I used to get very homesick as a child. While in school, I used to be in the handball team and for tournaments I had to stay away from home. These were only small trips though and the first time I really started living elsewhere was once I began my engineering course in Coimbatore. Only after I made a few friends did my homesickness go away.”Even today, he believes that no place can replace the comfort of one’s own home.
Why home remains his happiest place
Explaining what a home truly means to him, Tovino shared that it is more than just a building. For him, it represents peace, belonging and the freedom to be himself, especially after spending long periods away for film shoots.He said,”I believe that a house is a gift that will come into your life at the right time. The movie I am currently acting in, Thivandi, is being shot in the Payyoli- Malabar region. When I have to stay in hotels for projects like this, I miss my home a lot. I believe, we are most happy and calm, and that we are able to be ourselves only in our own homes.”Today, Tovino lives in his ancestral home, Ellikkal, in Irinjalakuda, Thrissur. On the professional front, the actor was recently seen in Dijo Jose Antony’s Pallichattambi, which also featured Kayadu Lohar and Prithviraj Sukumaran in pivotal roles.
