HER OWN WAY

MRUNAL THAKUR BELIEVES IN TELLING IT LIKE IT IS, NOTES SUMAN SHARMA

- SUMAN SHARMA

MRUNAL THAKUR is a powerhouse of talent straddling both South and Hindi industries. Her fans are besotted by her girl-next-door looks but there’s more to her than just playing good girl characters. She played a hard-boiled cop in the recently released Gumraah and won plaudits for her performance. Earlier, in Jersey, her display of tough love towards Shahid Kapoor too won her admirers. Her Telugu hit, Seeta Ramam, squarely put her in the box as a pan-Indian heroine to watch out for. Mrunal’s aim in life is to do great work and be remembered for posterity. She’s someone who dances to her own beat, come what may. Excerpts from an heart-to-heart conversation with the talented actress:

WHAT DREW YOU TO SIGN GUMRAAH?

I was ecstatic to portray a cop because, as you may have seen in Drishyam or Mardaani, Tabu and Rani Mukerji played amazing characters. One of the reasons I did this was for them. There are many actresses with whom I’d always wanted to work with. And I wanted to do the kind of powerful roles which they’re famous for. I didn’t have to play a sister, wife, or lover in Gumraah. It was interesting because I was just shown doing my duty as a cop in the film.

YOUR PREVIOUS FILM, JERSEY, DID NOT PERFORM WELL AT THE BOX OFFICE, BUT SITA RAMAM WAS ADORED. DO YOU CONSIDER 2022 TO BE PROFESSIONALLY BITTERSWEET?