Venkat Raman –
venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
An eager newcomer to the Kollywood industry, Sabby Jey will be making her debut in Director G. Kalaimamani’s next film after being scouted from her Instagram [sabbyjeyxx]. Sabby states that “After a year of planning, the director sent me a contract as the lead female character for his film ‘Vanarpadai’.” She was contacted a year ago and arrived in India as of the 10th of June after completing her degree a few days before. Kalaimamani quotes “Sabby was very suitable for the Reporter character I had in mind, it did not matter that she was a foreigner.”
Shortly after her arrival, she was offered another lead role in the upcoming film ‘Kadhal Nagaran (City of love) ‘, directed by M A Bala. She “feels privileged that after arriving in India she has had many offers due to being in the capable hands of her manager Nikhil Murugan who believes she is ‘aspiring, energetic and focused to achieve, not to win’.”
Sabby is a 22-year-old New Zealand born – Sri Lankan Tami who was residing in Auckland, New Zealand until recently. As of June, she completed her Bachelor of Business (Finance) whilst studying, working and pursuing commercial modelling through modelling company: Joyce Management. She was also a Miss Universe New Zealand semi-finalist last year.
She attributes a large amount of her recognition to her social media through which her constant updating has allowed her to gain exposure on an international level. She receives quite a few offers through her social media accounts that allow her to pursue exciting new opportunities such as this one. She believes that social media, when used correctly, can be a very important platform in entering the entertainment industry. Speaking of which, both her Instagram and Snap Chat are public so that her followers can keep up with her exciting journey in Chennai [Instagram & Snapchat: sabbyjeyxx]
Though she had her doubts about pursuing a career in acting in an unfamiliar country where she didn’t speak the native tongue, her passion and drive to be a part of the industry had caused her to strive in what could have been a difficult change. She grew up loving Tamil movies despite growing up in a western country and tried hard to 
learn to speak the language through watching films. She believes the has the right guidance and people supporting her and only came once she was sure that she had confirmed contracts that would allow her to establish a career in Kollywood. According to her, people have been kind and welcoming in the industry and have been pointing her in the direction of more offers. “I may be here a while,” is her response to where she thinks this will all take her. She is grateful to her family, friends and people in the Industry who have put their faith in her and believe she can do as well as she strives to.
FACTS:
Shakthi Vasanthu Prabhu’s first film is currently in the process of being released named “Enn Intha Mayakkam”. Previously worked on many of Prabhu Deva’s films as the Co-Director such as Pokiri.
Nikhil Murugan: The most well-known public relations manager and one of the most influential people in Chennai. He has previously managed Kamal Hassan and Rajnikanth.
