Mrunal Thakur speaking to scribes, shared her insecurities and the perception of beauty.
Mrunal said "Even after coming to Mumbai, I could not answer questions in class because I was insecure about my English and my Marathi accent. My name is unisex and boys would make fun of it. When I entered the industry, I felt I needed to sound elite. I thought accent and diction defined who you were. But today I realise insecurities only matter when you give them importance. Now I am comfortable in my own skin. I feel good the way I am."
She continued "Yes, absolutely. Sometimes people assume that if you are beautiful and successful, life must be easy. It is not. There are moments when I wish I could just be normal. For ‘Love Sonia’, my audition was placed in a folder marked ‘Do Not Open’. It was literally in a trash folder. Fortunately, the director opened it and felt I was right for the role. I had to convince the team that with prosthetics and makeup, we could make it work. People assume beauty makes everything easier. It does not. Everyone struggles. Beauty alone cannot carry you forward. Many things have to fall into place. I remember attending a funeral and not being able to grieve freely because cameras were around. Sometimes you just want to be a daughter or a sister, not an actor."
On difference between South and Hindi cinema, she said "The biggest difference is the language. Everything else is the same, the passion, the professionalism and the love for cinema. In Mumbai you get vada pav and kanda poha. In the South you get idli, vada, sambar and chutney. The beauty of both industries lies in the audience. The love I receive in both spaces is overwhelming. Work styles differ too. One film was completed in 38 days, another in 75, and one took 120 days. It depends on the director and the process. As an actor, I feel grateful for every experience."