Sowcar Janaki’s twin passions: Beyond cinema, the veteran actor loved food and designing interiors

Veteran actor Sowcar Janaki, who passed away today, pursued cooking and interior decoration with the same zest she brought to her acting career

Updated - August 21, 2026 05:08 pm IST

Actor Sowcar Janaki in a file photo in 2011 | Photo Credit: SAMPATH KUMAR GP

Sowcar Janaki, who passed away today at a private hospital in Chennai, was well known for the lunches and dinners she would host at her palatial home in Chennai. Her culinary skills were legendary; in fact, in the mid-1990s, Janaki hosted a cookery show called Ruchi-Abhiruchi, spread over 30 segments, on Gemini TV.

While her long-time dream to open an Indian restaurant in California did not take off, it was an advertisement in The Hindu about the shutting down of popular restaurant Coconut Grove on Harrington Road that made her realise a version of that dream in Chennai. Janaki said in an interview, “I jumped at the chance and took the place on lease for three years between 1992 and 1995. Within the next six months, there wasn’t anybody who had not eaten at my Coconut Grove. I would prepare some 25 dishes every day with a staff of 50 to 60 cooks. I would procure fresh fish from Marina beach.”

Janaki loved challenges – not just in real life, but in reel life as well. In fact, for a crucial sequence in Tamil superstar Rajinikanth’s Thillu Mullu, she had to climb a pipe, which she did without rehearsals. “I requested KB sir (the director of the film) to go directly for the take,” stated the actor, who made her debut in the 1950 Telugu film Shavukaru and went on to make a mark in several notable films including Edhir Neechal and Uyarndha Manidhan.

Janaki’s other passion was interior decoration; she was keenly interested in this aspect of her Bangalore and Chennai residences. During a ‘Madras Day’ talk in 2016, the actress told the audience, “I knew that someday, I’d lose fame. So, I have always kept in touch with my interests.”

Published - August 21, 2026 03:55 pm IST

Tamil cinema / Chennai / death / Actor

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