For Mrunal Thakur her journey in the film industry had not been easy. It was a big decision for her to make a shift from television to feature films. Being socially awkward as she claims herself to be, the journey was tough for her. In an exclusive interview with Firstpost’s Lachmi Deb Roy, she says that it is not easy to be an actor. There are a lot of things involved in making a place for yourself in the industry.
Excerpts from the interview:
Preparation for the role of Vidya in Jersey…
Jersey has been a wonderful and incredible journey. Something that I was dying to do for years and to get a chance to play a character with a lot of layers. ‘Vidya’ is a character that I wanted to be a part of after watching the original. I saw Nani and Shraddha Srinath perform and their chemistry and emotion and the story was flawless. I wanted to be a part of this good story. I remember on the first week of my Jersey shoot I was so scared whether I will be able to do justice to the role. I wanted to get the emotions right and I was also meeting Shahid Kapoor for the first time. So, that fear was there about whether I will be able to perform with him in the same frame or not. These questions were always playing at the back of mind. There was another pressure on my shoulder because Shraddha had performed so well in original Jersey. Then my director came to my rescue. He said, “Shraddha was playing the role of Saara, you are playing the role of Vidya, so you can perform the way you want it to.” Just make sure that the viewers are able to relate with your character. So, I kind of took my mother’s help to prepare for this role and there were many incidents which were derived from a woman who was a wife in the eighties and nineties and tried to understand what was the thought process then.
Jersey helped me evolve as a human being, not just as an actor. I dealt with so many emotions. I am not a mother, but the film made me realise what is it to be a mother. It has been an absolutely wonderful journey exploring the different emotions which I have not experienced in my real life.
How is Vidya different from Saara?
It is obviously the way Shradha has played it and I have tried to add a lot of personal touch to the character. I didn’t want to copy her because she has done a fabulous job and it is impossible to match up to the character of Saara. Shraddha has set the bench mark really high. Honestly, what I feel Saara and Vidya could be neighbours too going through the same problem. They both are very practical and want to dedicate their lives to the family and they both want to make sure that the family gets what they deserve.
How did you prepare yourself with the slap scene in Jersey?
I was shooting for the film on the third or the fourth day of my Jersey journey. I felt that in order to slap someone, you need to reach that connection. It is so involuntary; I didn’t know how it happened. But I did it. So, when we were shooting the scene, I was just trying to understand why is Vidya behaving the way she is and what made her slap the love of her life. But there is a saying, Jisa hum bahut zaada piyaar karate hai, ushe ham khapha bhee ho saakte hai (The one we love the most, we can be angry too). So, when I was preparing myself for that scene, I was asking myself what if I was in that kind of situation? What if my husband steals money from me what would I do? She is not slapping him because he stole money, she is slapping him because he is not the Arjun, she loved.
People change and why do they change is the question. And in a relationship, efforts are equal and if one partner stops taking the efforts of understanding and trusting each other, then the relationship starts breaking. I hope that scene is convincing and that slap should be convincing enough because the main intention of that action is to show that she has reached a point in her life where she just ends up raising her hand. I know people are going to hate me for slapping Shahid Kapoor, but that was the most important scene from the film and very challenging one.
Does Jersy talk about life?
Each and every moment in the film, I was trying to relate to not only Vidya and Arjun’s character, but everybody in the film. There are so many times there is a fight between parents because of the child and the child feels guilty. And I wanted to also understand the emotions of the kids and how they are happy to see that everything is fine between his/her parent.
Imagine what happens if a husband wakes up and says, ‘I want to be a painter or a musician and now you take charge of the family. What would your reaction be like? These are the slice of life which are very relatable. The film is based in Chandigarh and if the man of the house is not earning, it becomes a talk of the town. It is also about expectations when a child asks a father that I want a jersey and how the parent really goes out of his way to give him want he wants.
Today also I feel that my parents had an expectation from me and I also pushed myself hard so that I am able to fulfil their dreams. This is a story about Arjun, Vidya and their kid. I must say that after watching the film, we should always thank our parents which we never do.
How much of ‘you’ do you see in ‘Vidya’?
Not much, except the fact that she is being practical and she is thinking about the future of the family. Vidya is an extreme control freak and so am I. But apart from that, he takes certain decisions of her life which are against her family and I don’t think I can do that. In my real life, if my parents are not with me in my decisions making process, I don’t think I will be able to succeed.
How emotionally did you get connected to the character of Vidya?
The best thing that happened to me was the movie came to me during the time of lockdown and we live in a city like Mumbai where there is so much noise and clutter that you can’t really hear your own thought. But the lockdown gave me the time to think about the character of Vidya and I watched the original film several times so that I am able to perform better. Honestly, Vidya chose me, I didn’t choose Vidya. You will simply fall in love with every character of Jersey because every character in the film is unique and everybody has their own stories.
The lesson that I learnt from the character of Vidya is to allow people to follow their dreams, just support them. Your support can mean the world to them. One thing I have learnt from Vidya is that never come in between anybody’s dreams.
Your journey in the film industry…
When I was switching from television to film, I knew I could do it because I had that belief in myself. I had this supportive bunch of people always trying to motivate me and making me believe in myself. I have worked with lovely filmmakers and co-actors and now I just can’t wait to explore more. I feel I have just started the journey. ‘Picture toh abhi baaki hai’. I want to be a part of some extraordinary roles.
Being an outsider how difficult was it for you in the film industry?
The initial years were tough. There are a lot of things involved in making a place for yourself in the industry. An actor’s life is not easy. One needs to have that aura. We need to look presentable all the time and know what to wear for what occasion. Your style quotient plays a very important role in this industry. So, there is a lot that goes beyond acting. But I love being on sets. I am a creative person, but not a business person. Having said that I must admit that though my initial phase in the industry was difficult, now I know how things work and I am getting a hang of it. I feel my work should speak more than anything else. I am a socially awkward person, but there are some people in the industry who make me feel comfortable, so I have no complaints.
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