Apparently, 'Jayamma Panchayathi' director was skeptical about Suma pulling off Jayamma's role, until she proved otherwise Although she had a dream debut as heroine with the film ‘Kalyana Prapthirastu’ in 1996, which was directed by the late legend Dasari Narayana Rao, in the next two-and-half decades, it was as a television compere and host for film functions that made Suma Kanakala, a household name across the Telugu States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Suma is all set to make a comeback as an actress in a leading role with the upcoming film Jayamma Panchayathi. “I’ve worked as a compere for so long that I decided to do something different. I realised that I’m basically an entertainer and that’s when I started to listen to scripts,” said Suma. Apparently, director Vijay Kumar Kalivarapu wasn’t convinced that she could deliver in the role of Jayamma when he first narrated the script to her. "He asked me point-blank whether I was confident about pulling off the role and seemed skeptical even when I answered in the affirmative. But after a few days of shoot, he was totally convinced,” said Suma who also believes in the project for another reason. “People keep saying that it’s tough for a woman to achieve something after marriage and kids. I intend to prove them wrong again with ‘Jayamma Panchayathi',” she concludes.