Kriti Sanon Says Playing Mukti in 'Tere Ishk Mein' Took a Toll On Her: 'My Mother Would Ask Me If I Was Okay'

Actor Kriti Sanon is proud when told that Mukti in Tere Ishk Mein is being spoken of as yet another turning point in her career. At the Red Sea Film Festival 2025, the actor admits she can't stop keeping a tab on the love that's coming her way for the Anand L Rai directorial, which has emerged as a huge success at the box office.

“The film is very intense. It has a lot of layers,” she says in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, recalling how the climactic stretch with co-star Dhanush tested her.

“It is a bloody climax. It has tears and heart and intensity and pain and guilt. That whole portion did take a toll on me. I used to come back home very drained. I remember my mom used to ask, 'Are you okay? Is everything okay?"

For Sanon, that exhaustion sits alongside a kind of creative joy. "I like playing flawed characters, I like that people are writing flawed characters, and I like that we are not perfect anymore, women especially. That is something that also attracted me to Do Patti. The characters were flawed. There has to be a grey shade. They have to make mistakes because they are human,” she says.

The actor describes that inner negotiation as part of the job, stating that one cannot "judge" the character they are playing. “You need to know the reason why she is doing what she is doing and you need to know ki haan main apni jagah theek hoon (yes, I was right in my place).”

In Tere Ishk Mein, written by Himanshu Sharma and Neeraj Yadav, she believes the storytelling turns that gaze back on the audience. “It leaves you conflicted at the end. You feel yeh bhi theek hai, yeh bhi galat nahi hai, yeh bhi galat hai aur yeh bhi galat hai (this is also correct, this is also not wrong, she is also wrong, and he is also wrong). You will not be able to decide who is more right or more wrong,” she says.

Away from the set, Sanon has found herself glued to reactions. “Work is the only thing that can keep me away from my phone,” she laughs. She admits she has been “obsessively checking reviews and people’s reactions and numbers.” What has meant the most are messages that go beyond pleasantries. “They are properly heartfelt. It is the kind of message where someone tells you they just could not stop themselves from messaging you,” she concludes.

Watch our full interview with Kriti Sanon from the Red Sea Film Festival 2025 dropping soon on our YouTube channel