Unfiltered and unapologetic, Mrunal Thakur is rewriting her own script

There’s something about Mrunal Thakur. A pulchritudinous girl who disarms you with her warmth and smile to snub delulu where it hurts the most—in being as real as it gets. Mrunal feels like the MVP who is almost always fully present in the moment.

She made this quality pretty evident while on set for the cover shoot, picking up on small nuances and noticing everything and everyone, from the art lead to the spot boy.

Strong-willed, after almost 13 years in the entertainment business, 32-year-old Mrunal’s body of work and filmography is reflective of a range of characters and story arcs that are diverse and divergent, all at once. She not only managed to gracefully transition from making her television debut in 2012 to regional cinema in 2014, but consciously chose to make her Hindi film debut in 2018 with Love Sonia (inspired by the perilous world of sex trafficking), directed by Tabrez Noorani alongside Freida Pinto, Manoj Bajpayee, Adil Hussain, Anupam Kher, RajKummar Rao, Richa Chadha, Demi Moore, and others.

How has she managed to be friends with that often-elusive thing called ‘mindfulness’? When we connect over our interview call, I dive straight in—is the attention to detail and being privy to how everyone around her is feeling what makes her thrive and come alive?

“Yes, because most of the people keep worrying about tomorrow or keep living in their past, and you know keep bringing up those, ‘mere saath yeh hua tha-voh hua tha’ (this happened to me, that happened to me) and don’t live in the moment.

Also, it’s important to be able to talk it out because most of the people don’t find it comfortable expressing themselves or even asking for help. We are allowed to feel a lot of other emotions besides being happy...and it’s absolutely okay to feel a certain way. Even in school when we were growing up, we were only taught to pass and succeed. But no one taught us how to deal with the grief...that moment when you lose your family or friends. No one teaches you how to deal with failure either. That’s why I love being around children...they do what they have to, and I feel like there is so much learning in that because they don’t have any inhibitions. Also one of the many reasons why living in the moment is extremely important for me.”

deep sense of self-awareness to have this level of clarity—I am amazed and in awe, as Mrunal explains, “I feel this self-awareness comes from the people we’re surrounded by, and also the industry that we work in. On a movie set, we have a big set-up, crew, and actors, so I don’t restrict myself from sharing my experience or talking to everyone. I’m the most chatty person ever, because I’m very curious to know what’s happening in someone’s life. I remember when I used to travel to college in the local train, I would end up chatting with strangers and they would just share their problems with me. So, this self-awareness also comes from a lot of conversations I have, and partly because of the experiences around me, in addition to the characters I’ve played. I would never wear the shoes of Sita (from Sita Ramam) or Indu (from The Family Star), or Sonia (Love Sonia), but I have learnt from their experiences.”

Our conversation veers to her growing up years and childhood experiences that often shape our personality and idiosyncrasies. Mrunal has always been close to her parents and siblings, and shares how being a part of big family dynamics made her more determined and resilient to find her own path. She recalls, “When we were younger, if there was a feast at home and guests suddenly dropped by, it would affect our budget, even though we were a middle-class family. My grandmother would end up eating rice or roti with just chicken curry, because there wouldn’t be any pieces left. Early on, I got it in my head that I have to give my parents the best of everything, and I promised to work hard for it. Of course, parenting is tricky—with their first born (my sister who is two years older), my dad acknowledges they were still trying to figure out how to raise a child. By the time I came around, they had kind of figured out what to do.” Twelve years later, Mrunal’s youngest sibling was born.

While we are on the subject of growing pains and pleasures, she is thrilled to tell me of her recent trip to her childhood home, Dhule (think Gulmohar trees in the laidback city of Nashik), along with her most precious purchase of late—Leica Q3 43. She paints a vivid picture for me featuring her Aaji’s palang (grandmother’s bed) and jhula (swing), where she would sing lullabies for her brother; suitcases and a yellow water filter, which would always accompany the family as they explored Ajanta-Ellora Caves, or went for family picnics along with big steel containers that would be used to store water when there was a scarcity.

I am curious to know if her older sister, Lochan, knew of Mrunal’s cinematic dreams. Turns out, dancing to her own beat, no one knew of the auditions she was busy giving in Mumbai while her parents were in Kerala.

There was no point in telling her extended family, since she wasn’t sure how it would be received, so the zealousness to really crack the acting bug came when a friend told her of an impossible audition, and that she would easily take another five years to make it.

Mrunal passionately tells me, “I went for an audition. The monologue was about Maa... I was away from my mother and this was for a Marathi channel. My mother tongue. I killed it. I said even more than what was written in that script. So, I got that Marathi show. From there, I went on to Hindi television, and that’s how the journey began.

I think my family trusts me more than I trust myself...and I live for them. I remember one of the reasons why I’m so crazy about cars is because of my mom. When I was 12 or 13, she was not allowed to sit in one of our relative’s cars, and that really hit me. In my head, I was like, ‘I’m going to have a crazy car for you, Mama. You just wait’. And I’m not very public about what I buy. I don’t flaunt my purchases. But that day was so beautiful. It was in February 2023, almost two years ago. We were just standing there and crying. And we were like, ‘Mom, can you believe it?’ I’m the first girl in the family to own a Mercedes.”

While we talk of people she wish she could share her success with who may no longer be there, she speaks of her uncle from her mom’s side who was a huge Rajesh Khanna and Dev Anand fan and would keep playing their songs. Reminiscing, she graciously opens up, “Had it not been for him, I wouldn’t have known of this world early on. My uncle passed away while I was holding his hands. I had never experienced someone dying right in front of me. Before going, his words were, ‘Please live your life for your family, because there shouldn’t be any regret when you die’. That really hit me, because what’s the point of living in regret?”

The confidence Mrunal has is telling. Perhaps she didn’t have any insecurities while growing up... I wonder, when I probe, when was the first time she was made to feel beautiful? She shares, “All my life, I grew up thinking that I was ugly. I had a unibrow. I had a lot of body hair. The first time I had make-up on, a photographer said, ‘Oh my God...she’s looking so good’. It was for a look test. And then there was this beautiful encounter with Demi Moore during the filming of Love Sonia. We had a scene where she had to comfort me and, every time I cried, she would say, ‘Oh my God, you’re so beautiful, even when you cry’, to which I didn’t know how to react. I ended up becoming very comfortable in the scene and not conscious of how my face was looking. Also, there is beauty in every woman being unapologetic. I don’t want to be like anyone else, I want to be like me... be the best version of myself by evolving everyday.”

What are her thoughts on love and promises that must be kept when situationships and all kinds of shippin’ flags take precedence over unconditional love? She retorts, “I believe when you love someone, there are no conditions. I don’t have a partner. I’ve not been dating since a really long time, but from people around me, like my best friends, I gather that when you’re married, you have some beautiful stories to share. My friend’s relationship was across continents (from Melbourne) and it was truly unconditional. Irrespective of what her life was in India, she left everything for him. Love is blind... but it is also unconditional.

Speaking of love, I have been a cat mom and I lost Billo in February this year. He was 18. He lived his life, but the amount of love that he’s given me, you can’t compare that. And while I am not ready to have another Billo in my life just yet, I will adopt one at some point. One of my ex-managers, Asha, adopted a cat I was fostering and now we call him Lychee. While I may be digressing, in my free time, I actually foster cats and propagate plants! It gives me so much joy when out of a snake plant, a new baby plant pops up, and then I just transfer it to another one and gift it to someone on their birthday.

Currently, I am focusing on my bucket list, which included sending my brother to America to study filmmaking at a place I would have liked to go.” So, what’s next on her bucket list?

To travel with her family to America, London, and Europe, basically, take them everywhere; to change the definition of how Indian women are perceived; and to enjoy motherhood. She says, “I think I’ll be a good mom. I just don’t know with who, so that is something that I’m working on.

I want to explore acting; not just stay limited to Telugu, Hindi, and Marathi films but also debut in Tamil, Malayalam, English, and Spanish films. So I’m taking one step at a time. I also want to work with filmmakers that I have grown up watching—those whom have inspired me to be in this industry. I loved the adaptation of The Namesake (2006) by Meera Nair. Then, of course, I want to work with Sanjay Leela Bansali, because who doesn’t love him? Imtiaz Ali, Anurag Kashyap, the list goes on.

Before both of us realise, we have spent over an hour on call, where she has proven her ability to multitask and stay present by declaring... “I have literally cleaned my entire room while talking to you! And you know what, the time is right to do anything that you want to accomplish your dreams.”

We hear you, Mrunal.

Editor and interview: Pratishtha Dobhal (@pratishtha_dobhal)
Digital Editor: Sonal Ved (@sonalved)
Photographer: Vaishnav Praveen (@vaishnavpraveen), The House Of Pixels (@thehouseofpixels)
Stylist: James Lalthanzuala (@jameslalthanzuala)
Cover Design: Mandeep Singh Khokhar (@mandy_khokhar19)
Editorial Coordinator: Shalini Kanojia (@shalinikanojia)
Make-up and Hair Artist: Kritika Gill (@kritikagill)
Assistant Make-up and Hair Artist: Juveria Motorwala (@makeupbyjuveria_)
Assistant Stylists: Astha Killa (@asthakilla), Saloni Gupta (@sal.did.a.thing), Rachi Chitkara (@rachichitkara/)
Location: The Alum Studios (@thealumstudios)
Artist Reputation Management: Hardly Anonymous Communications (@hardlyanonymous_2.0)

Mrunal is wearing Outfit, Rahul Mishra (@rahulmishra_7); Shoes, RC42, New Balance (@newbalanceindia).