I am not ready to do intimate scenes: Mitali Nag

The talented actress Mitali Nag is currently playing Krishna in ‘Afsar Bitiya’. She was earlier seen doing small roles in shows like ‘Mano Ya Na Mano’ and ‘Wanted-High Alert’.

A couple of days’ back I visited the sets of Zee TV’s Afsar Bitiya to meet her. When I entered the set location, I saw a girl draped in a beautiful saree. It was a full moon night and that girl was glowing like a star. She was feeding a stray cat and didn’t realize that I was standing behind her. When she turned back, she was surprised to see me there. She welcomed me with a warm smile, and asked me to wait for a while.

After waiting for a few minutes she came back and said "I'm sorry, I went to change my clothes.” She was a bright student and always scored good marks in exams and actively participated in all the activities.  She was a shy child, who never used to fight.  Sometimes when she was mistreated by other people, she used to return home crying.  Her cousin sister used to fight for her, as Mitali always failed to defend herself.

 “Though I was very shy in my childhood, my character started to change, and gradually I became outspoken.  A girl who cannot protect herself has changed a lot now. I just cannot accept injustice. I fight whenever I see anybody ill-treating or abusing me or anyone else for no reason.  Now I have become more confident women.”

 Mitali has become synonymous as Krishna, who dreamt of becoming a block development officer (BDO) and later got success after lots of drama. As a kid Mitali never dreamt to become an actor. “I never ever thought of coming in this field, though I used to sing from my childhood. My mom believes that education is must for every kid, so she always asked to concentrate on studies.  I completed my B.COM and then MBA.”

She continued, “We have an academy in Nagpur, so I was connected to drama, dancing and singing.  Everyone used to say, Mitali you must try your luck in this field. Then I moved to Mumbai and started working in a BPO for a year and a half after MBA.  Later I realized that I was made for something else and decided to join media. I think it was in my destiny to become an actress. I joined theatre group I.F.T.A and then Big Bang theatre. I polished my acting through theatre; side by side I groomed myself better for singing. I did a few reality shows for DD like ‘Khelo Khaao Jeeto’ and ‘Music Masti aur Dhoom’. Later I won ‘Bol Baby Bol’. I started doing episodics.  Finally I got a major break from ‘Afsar Bitiya’.”

It’s very difficult for a fresher to start career in acting, especially when you don’t have a God Father. Every new comer has to face lots of hurdles and almost every newcomer comes across casting couch.  Dusky actress Mitali had also undergone this, “Yes it exists. People are quite diplomatic; they do not directly say it in words, ghuma fira kar baat karte hai. They start giving hints, like what are you doing in the evening or let’s be friends.  And I always told such people that I am not here to make friends. I already have lots of friends, and I am looking forward to work. If they didn’t stop there then I stopped interacting with them.”

So is it mandatory to do compromises and say yes for casting couch? “I asked one of my friends, what should I do? I am not ready to compromise, so shall I call it quit? He said, you may or may not get work after compromising. If you are not ready for that then be patient. It will take time but slowly and gradually you will get work.  I didn’t mind waiting, but I was not ready to say yes for casting couch.”

There was a buzz that Parul Chauhan is replacing Mitali in Afsar Bitiya.  “There was an online article that said actress Parul Chauhan is going to replace me when the fact is that Parul has not even been approached,” Mitali told to one of the leading tabloid. She added, “There have been a lot of rumors floating around regarding my replacement. And I was unaware about everything; fortunately I am still part of the show that has given me name, fame, love and appreciation.”

Petite Actress was earlier associated with a production house as an executive producer and now she is all set to enter in producer’s shoes. She is co-producing a movie with his friend and Sara Khan is finalized to play the lead role. “One of my friend was planning to produce films. At that time he told me that you will be part of my film. After that I signed Afsar Bitiya, now three films produced by his production company are lined up. He asked to play the lead role, but unfortunately due to my hectic timings I was not able to act in his first film. So I am co-producing that film. Things are still on paper, ground work is going on.”

While ending the interview, the last thing I asked whether she is ready to do intimate scenes in the films. “I can’t even imagine myself to do steamy scenes in films or serials. I think I am still a little bit conservative,” quips Mitali. She ended our conversation with a smile. It was 10 p.m. and one could easily notice the glitter in her eyes, she was still glowing like a rising sun.

-K Himaanshu Shukla...




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