Rima Kallingal

Rima is one of the gifted actors of the industry.  She is a trained dancer, model and an actor who works majorly in Malayalam cinema. She participated in the Miss Kerala contest in 2008 and finished as the first runner-up. Since then, she was driven to take up acting as her career. She debuted in Mollywood in 2009, with “ Ritu Click to look into! >> Read More... ” and later was also seen in “Neelathaamara.”

Coming from a cultured background, Rima learned to dance since she was three years old. She is a trained classical dancer. Her skill has given her opportunities to dance at national as well as international stages. She studied till class V, in Stanes Anglo Higher Secondary School in Coonoor, and then changed her school to Chinmaya Vidyalaya in Thissur. She holds a graduation degree in Journalism from the prestigious Christ College in Bangalore. 

Other than dancing, Rima is also trained in Taekwondo, Chao, a Manipuri martial art form, and Kalaripayattu. Before participating in the Miss Kerala pageant, she participated in Vodafone Thakadhimi, where she was the semifinalist. Later she pursued her modeling career in Bangalore. It was then that she came back confident, for Miss Kerala, but she finished as a runner-up. Director Lal Jose had spotted her in one of the magazine covers, and pretty impressed by her, he wanted to sign her for his Tamil film “Mazhai Varappoguthu” which eventually did not materialize. Later she was signed by Shyamaprasad for his film “Ritu” where she played the lead actress Varsha. This marked her debut in the industry, as well as it was liked by many. Later she was seen portraying the role of Thessa, in “22 Female Kottayam,” which was not only a hit at the box office but also a critically acclaimed one. The movie was released in 2012, and especially her role was appreciated by many. For her role in “22 Female Kottayam”, she was awarded the Best Actress Award by the Kerala Government.  I

In 2013, Rima took up anchoring, where she anchors the show “Midukki” on Mazhavil Manorama. It is reported that due to this, she is barred from acting in the film industry. She married her long time friend, Ashiq Abu, in November 2013, who is also the director of “22 Female Kottayam” in a small ceremony, where both the brothers of both sides were eye-witnesses of their marriage. The marriage took place in the presence of close family friends, as they were against the pomp and show of wedding.

Rima has recently cleared all the airs, as to whether she was planning to discontinue working.  She said that she will continue working after marriage, as she doesn’t like mixing her work life with personal life.