A naalumani plant (mirabilis jalapa) that stood in the garden of the 24 cents where KPAC Lalitha spent her childhood had great significance in her life. When it is past noon, Lalitha’s mother would begin eagerly looking at the plant to see whether the flowers have bloomed. The flowers that bloom only in the evening meant that it was time for Lalitha to be home from school. Lalitha was strictly instructed to get home exactly when the flowers bloom. However, it took at least 10 minutes for her to reach home, even if she ran all the way from school. Lalitha’s mother wouldn’t listen to her pleas and impatiently question the little girl where she had been. She would cane her daughter for not obeying her instructions. Lalitha’s neighbours used to ask her whether her mother had adopted her. Meanwhile, the mother believed that she could always control her daughter with a cane and a set of strict rules.
Once, during an Onam season, Lalitha even tried to take her own life, unable to suffer the thrashes. Her father was a photographer who often worked with silver nitrate. Lalitha mixed silver nitrate from her father’s collection, in water and drank it. She vomited all night and was sick. Her face swelled up. It was only luck that saved Lalitha’s life that night.
Lalitha’s mother was going through severe mental stress as she was worried about her father’s irresponsible attitude. The poverty and anxiety about her kids’ future had pushed her into desperation. Moreover, her mother, despite being the member of a reputed family, was destined to live penniless.
Lalitha’s mother was pregnant when her father went into hiding after getting involved in a murder case in Thodupuzha. The police came to their house looking for her father and constantly interrogated the family members. Police personnel even camped near the house hoping that he would come home to see his new born twins. However, Lalitha’s father who got news about the police movement near his house, didn’t come home even when one of the babies died on the fifth day.
Lalitha suffered a lot even after the demise of her husband, noted filmmaker Bharathan. The talented actress who made the audience laugh with her onscreen portrayal of characters, didn’t like to show her tears to the world. Lalitha had later said that she was neck in deep in debts after Bharathan passed away. She had stared at a debt of around Rs 1 crore at a time when she had lost her beloved husband.
