People call me a pan-India star but I want to be known as a global artiste: Mrunal Thakur
With her second Telugu film out, actor Mrunal Thakur is on cloud nine and can't wait for more projects across languages
Mrunal Thakur is in New York (USA) for a special screening of her latest film, Hi Nanna, where she stars opposite actor Nani. After acting in Sita Ramam (2022), the actor is excited to be a part of another Telugu film. “I had never planned to be a part of television or films, or even [act in] the Telugu or Marathi industry. It happened organically,” she says.
Ask how she filters the projects that come her way and the 31-year-old shares her secret. “I’m open to everything! Growing up, I wasn’t allowed to watch television, so, I would watch it on mute. For me, language wasn’t a barrier and I would watch Marathi and even Bengali films. That’s when I realised that I shouldn’t restrict myself,” she says, adding, “Whatever story comes to me, if it is good and exciting, irrespective of what language it is in, I will do it. Today, people call me a pan-India star, but I want to be known as a global artiste, who isn’t afraid of performing in any language.”
In her latest release, the Lust Stories 2 actor plays the role of a hopeless romantic. She feels that the pressure to carrying romantic films rests on her shoulder and also hopes that through her films, she will be able to give the younger generation a better understanding of love. “(Actor) Shah Rukh Khan has set the benchmarks for the romance genre. I feel like I have the responsibility to take that forward. I just want people to believe in love! I want youngsters to take those steps and not just believe in the idea of being in love but to find the right person and shower them with love.”
However, this doesn’t mean that the actor wants to get stuck in a certain stereotype or genre. “I also want to explore and understand what it feels to be a part of an action film, or a horror film or a thriller, I’m just going with the flow,” she says and adds, “I think I truly want to do a crazy horror film. I want to play the role of a sweet character who turns out to be a ghost, it has an element of surprise!”
