Mrunal Thakur made quite the splash this year with her performance in the Telugu film Sita Ramam, which proved to be a pan-India hit. Not only was her chemistry with Dulqer Salmaan much-appreciated, but her strong screen presence, and surreal beauty were also talked about. Sita Ramam has no doubt upped her popularity over social media. Some people even compared her to the late Madhubala . Mrunal beams, “I was really happy when people saw me as Madhubala. And I would say, if there is anything made in the future, which is in a way, related to Madhubala, I would love to feature in it. I would love to be a part of it, even if it is a song performance, a play or a movie, or a single scene, I would love to work on it.”
Despite all the adulation she’s been getting over the internet, Mrunal confesses she isn’t social media savvy. While the world may prefer WhatsApp forwards and emojis as expressions of emotions, she prefers hand-written letters just for the sheer magic they hold. “We do sometimes need to take some effort and share our responses or share our love on a handwritten note. I’m waiting for that one love letter,” she giggles.
The talk veers to her talented co-star Dulquer Salmaan. Mrunal is all smiles as she talks about him. She mentions that even though Dulquer was a little sceptical about featuring in a romantic film at first, he was committed once he signed on the dotted line. “He’s a phenomenal actor. He’s a wonderful human being, and I can’t wait to share screen space with him again. So filmmakers out there if you think there’s a great script for Dulquer and me, please cast us together,” she chuckles.
Sita is one of the finest characters she has played on screen. She confesses that the biggest challenge for her as an actor was to do justice to the director’s vision. She feels satisfied that she was able to do it. She adds that becoming her character in any film gives a different kind of a high that’s hard to describe. Says she, “When you get into the skin of the characters, you feel powerful.
And that’s what Sita did to. That’s what Sonia had done. That’s what Supriya (Super 30), Vidya (Jersey) Soumya (Dhamaka) did to me. I feel like I’m a different person altogether.”
The actress believes when you pick on the good qualities of the characters written for you, it invariably makes you a better person and a better actor. She shares, “I would say the kind of person I am today is also because of the characters I’ve played in the past. I have learnt so many things from them. No one can take away Sita from me, no one can take away Sonia from me.”
Her debut film, Love Sonia, saw her enact the role of a village girl who gets sold into the international flesh trade. Most girls opt for a soft debut, like a rom com but Mrunal wanted something that would make people take notice of her acting chops. The film proved to be a conversation starter and made people aware of the far-reaching tentacles of human trafficking.
Her eyes light up when she talks about it. She says, “During the Love Sonia look test, there was no blow-dried hair or makeup or outfits, or no beautiful locations.
I was put into some really basic clothes and no hair and makeup, and just put on centre stage and asked to perform.” She feels that the film was released ahead of its time and would have fared better if it was released today. She’s happy she got to travel around the world as the film received various awards at different film festivals. “Love Sonia completed four years on September 14,” she reminisces. “Sometimes, there are days where I’m really feeling low. I think about my journey. I go back, I revisit them, I watch my films, I study them, and I make notes as to where I need to improve.”
One look at Mrunal Thakur’s Bollywood journey and you see it is replete with films which have been different from each other. Super 30 which saw her share screen space with Hrithik Roshan, was a biopic on educator Anand Kumar. Mrunal truly held her own opposite Hrithik and made an impact with her performance. Such was the case with Batla House too, where she played John Abraham’s love interest. Jersey, where she played Shahid Kapoor’s strict wife, did not reap the desired results at the box office but it received much attention on OTT. “We’ve made a good film. I’m happy that I was part of Jersey even though it was a remake. It got delayed due to COVID and would definitely have fared better if it was released on its original release date. The change of dates affected its performance for sure,” she reacts.
With Jersey not meeting box-office expectations, one might think that her forthcoming release Gumrah, co-starring Aditya Roy Kapur, would make her nervous as it’s also a South remake. The actress shares that it’s an adaptation of the Tamil film Thadam (2019) and the debutant director - Vardhan Ketjkar has truly done his utmost in making the film look original and fresh. “I’m playing a cop in the film. It’s the first time I’d be putting on a uniform and hence I’m all excited about it,” she shares. She adds that crime always fascinated her. A friend’s father was a crime reporter and she grew up listening to true crime stories.
“I was fascinated by crime journalism at one point and perhaps could have become a crime reporter myself. As a child, I was fascinated by Sherlock Holmes stories too and often fascinated about solving crimes,”
she smiles.
She has worked with a plethora of A-listers - and says the best career advise her ‘seniors’ have shared with her is, “Do one film at a time, worship your body, and live the character.” She’s deeply passionate about her craft and says she has never said yes to a film because of the banner, or the chance to work with a big star or director. “My first criteria is that the role should excite me. I say yes when I feel I can connect to my character. And I’m someone who’s totally committed to a film after signing it. In fact, I come on the sets even when my scenes aren’t there just to soak in what’s happening and have a better understanding of the project.”
Her forthcoming films, Pippa, Pooja Meri Jaan or Gumraah, each belong to a different genre. She says she doesn’t want to be stereotyped. “I’m at a very interesting point in my career. I’m looking forward to playing some extraordinary characters.”
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