Poorna Malavath talks about conquering Everest, challenges and about her biopic with Unnati Joshi
Born to farm labourers in Telangana, Poorna Malavath became the youngest girl to climb Mt Everest at 13, a feat she pursued with dedication only to prove that she was worth more than what being another village girl would. Nobody encouraged her true potential though she was a good athelete in government schools. It was at one such residential school that a teacher recommended her for a rock-climbing course, a scouting drill for a potential expedition to Mt Everest. “I didn’t even know what Everest was,” says the coy girl who has just turned 16.
“We are a family of four. My father and mother are agricultural labourers, my elder brother is doing civil engineering in Hyderabad. I am from Palaka village, Nizamabad distric. There aren’t any bus, road or shop facilities. We have to walk seven km to buy anything. For a tribal like me, opportunities are very rare and I was looking for one opportunity where I could prove my calibre,” Poorna told us.
She became a minor celebrity after she scaled the world’s highest summit but as soon as Rahul Bose decided to produce a film on her, a lot more people wanted to know about her. “People have interviewed me before too but a lot more people have approached me after the announcement of the film. It feels wonderful and I am grateful to Rahul Bose for it,” she said.
Recounting her challenges, she said, “I took eight months to train in rock-climbing, ice and snow climbing, learnt how to adjust in cold weather and did a three-month intensive training to climb Mt Everest. I used to jog, exercise, do yoga and meditate for my overall well-being. The day I reached the top, I sat there for a while and enjoyed the world below; I could see the tents, other people who were climbing with me. That’s when I understood the magnitude of human possibility. I didn’t face any problem while climbing the Everest but when I was learning rock climbing, I was initially afraid. The training helped me overcome my fear. I never thought of giving up.”
So who motivated her along the journeyIJ “My coach Shekhar Babu, who climbed Mt Everest in 2007. Reaching the top has made me confident more than anything else. In my village girls aren’t treated properly. luckily, this opportunity came my way and I could demonstrate that girls indeed can do anything,” she shared.
Aditi, the 14-year-old debutante playing the role of Poorna in the forthcoming biopic, said, “I never expected to get such a role. I have learnt theatre arts for three years in my school and my dramatics teacher recommended my name for this film. I got the role after many auditions and I had to unlearn the rule book. Rahul sir helped me get into the skin of the character. He is a great motivator. Whenever I failed to make the mark, he would take me on long walks and show me how to act. I just had to imitate him. He is very caring. I sprained my leg in Darjeeling and he didn’t even let my mother touch it. He took care of everything.”
Aditi, too, underwent an intense training session to learn rock-climbing. “There were many challenges. I wasn’t Aditi, I was playing Poorna there. I have been brought up in a city, playing a tribal girl was a big challenge. I am scared of water and there was a scene where I had to act as if I was drowning. It was very difficult not to choke there. I took a three-and-a-half-month break and when I came back home after that, people were wondering if I had fallen ill or something. I didn’t tell them about the film,” she told us.
Aditi shared that Poorna is a big inspiration for her and everyone around. “The line she said that girls can do anything has inspired me a lot. She climbed Everest just to prove that. I am totally inspired by her and I feel she is an inspiration to all.”
Poorna smiled as she said, “This is very humbling for me. I am very happy with where I am right now.”
Poorna also shared that she wants to be an IPS officer, “I want to climb other mountains in the world too but I also have to study right now as I want be an IPS officer,” she concluded.
Photo: Pankaj Kumar