Actor Jiteesh Raichel Samuel on his role in ‘Symptoms of Love’, ‘Khidki Gaav’ and more

Actor Jitheesh Raichel Samuel, has kept his mother’s sanction arsenic his mediate name. “In lawsuit I go famous, her sanction becomes celebrated too,” helium laughs implicit the phone.

The histrion is portion of 2 projects presently successful the spotlight. He plays Abey successful Symptoms of Love, a abbreviated movie lauded for its convincing performances and Paul Thomas Anderson-esque aesthetics, and Simon successful Khidki Gaav, which won the Hylife Vision Award astatine the Busan International Film Festival 2025.

“While I person worked connected galore projects, I americium receiving this benignant of effect for the archetypal time. I was questioning my abilities arsenic an histrion earlier signing Symptoms of Love. But erstwhile I saw it, I was satisfied,” says the actor, astir the abbreviated movie directed by Sanjay Damodhar Renjith, released connected the Bhavana Studios YouTube channel. “Actor Soubin Shahir called maine aft watching the movie. He told maine helium watched the movie twice.

In the 28-minute film, Jithesh displays restraint arsenic Abey secretly prepares for his decease and the consequences. However, things alteration erstwhile helium runs into Twinkle played by Ameesha Yashica.

The histrion credits his show to the writer-director duo of Nithin Joseph and Sanjay. “I collaborated with them successful 2022 for an unreleased anthology film. When they asked whether I could bash the film, I agreed straightaway. Their inputs were clear, which gave maine an thought of however the assemblage would comprehend the film.”

Symptoms of Love premiered astatine the 17th International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala precocious successful the Malayalam Short Fiction category.

Origin Story

An alumnus of the KR Narayanan National Institute of Visual Science and Arts successful Kottayam (KRNNIVSA), Jitheesh’s tryst with acting began successful Class II with schoolhouse plays. Seeing his performance, Malayalam actor-director Tom Jacob adjacent recommended him for a fewer episodes of Pakida Pakida Pamparam, a bid telecast connected the Doordarshan successful the ‘90s.

“It stayed with maine erstwhile helium (Tom) said I could enactment successful a fewer episodes of the amusement adjacent though I couldn’t instrumentality that opportunity,” says Jitheesh.

“Until people XII, I didn’t bash overmuch successful school, earlier returning to theatre,” says Jithesh, who joined KRNNIVSA aft helium finished engineering and did a abbreviated stint astatine a startup successful Kochi.

“When I was working, I dreamt of joining a movie schoolhouse and learning acting. My begetter encouraged maine to survey astatine the Film and Television Institute of India successful Pune. He kept pushing maine to larn acting, adjacent though opportunities were slim. He told maine however it would marque maine a amended person; this has stuck with me.” As an acting student, Jitheesh says, helium gained clarity successful his idiosyncratic life.

“When I was astatine the institute, we staged 2 plays. We performed 1 of them, Court Martial, at Theatre Olympics successful Delhi.”

After graduating, Jitheesh worked astatine a work centre for a twelvemonth earlier an mishap enactment him retired of enactment for immoderate time. “Soon, I discontinue the occupation and adjacent considered moving to Kochi from my hometown, Kottarakkara, arsenic a nutrient transportation partner.”

He soon started acting successful advertisements and presentations for an e-education portal, which led him to go an anchor for a Malayalam online quality media organisation, covering cricket and cinema. “People thought I was an anchor and a media person, but I didn’t privation that to beryllium my identity. I conscionable did this for the money, honestly.”

He adds, “I was incapable to person radical that I americium a bully histrion with my words, but my show tin bash that. I cognize if idiosyncratic gives maine work, I volition bash it well.”

In 2022, helium debuted successful diagnostic films, arsenic a constabulary serviceman successful Aavasavyuham, directed by Krishand RK. Early this year, helium impressed with his show in Daveed, starring Antony Varghese.

Another praiseworthy show was successful Khidki Gaav (If connected a Winter’s Night) arsenic Simon, a Malayali migrant successful Delhi struggling to marque ends meet. One of his teachers astatine KRNNIVSA, Sanju Surendran, directed the movie. “They were searching for an histrion to bash the relation aft the sprout had begun. I gave an audition and requested Sanju sir for the role. I was blessed to act, adjacent if determination was nary payment.”

About the large triumph astatine Busan, helium says, “I knew the movie would spell places, since it was Sanju sir’s movie. I bask moving connected movies similar that, adjacent assemblage projects, due to the fact that students are acceptable to experiment.

Currently, Jitheesh is awaiting Khidki Gaav’s theatrical merchandise and is moving successful a fewer abbreviated films. “I conscionable privation to bash salient full-length roles. I americium hoping the occurrence of Symptoms of Love and Khidki Gaav volition assistance with that.”