Mouni Roy Interview on 'Salakaar' and Career Post-'Brahmastra': 'My Name Wasn't Being Taken in a Lot of Rooms'

Mouni Roy was last on the big screen in The Bhootnii, playing a tree nymph named Mohabbat, eyes aflame, face aglow. More firmly wedged in popular memory is Junoon, from Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva (2022), a supernatural assassin who attacks Shah Rukh Khan in the film’s opening minutes, trailing plumes of wicked smoke in her wake. If you are familiar with Roy's trajectory, you can wager where these roles are stemming from—the actor’s reputation, for many years on TV, as its resident Naagin.

It’s a strange irony that someone so adept at playing a shape-shifter has been boxed in by the Hindi film industry. Yet Roy is capable of other things—she made her dramatic feature debut in Gold (2018), a period sports-drama where she played Akshay Kumar's wife, and has worked with top-rated directors like Hansal Mehta and Dibakar Banerjee.

In her new web series, Salakaar, she plays a spy, Mariam/Shristi, a deep-cover R&AW agent in Pakistan. The series, unfolding over two timelines and co-starring Naveen Kasturia, will stream on JioHotstar from August 8.

In a conversation with The Hollywood Reporter India, Roy spoke about her turn in the show, battling stereotypes and being snubbed by casting agents, and why the success of Brahmastra did not supercharge her film career. Excerpts from a conversation:

I hear you had to chase down your role — that of a nimble, savvy female agent — in Salakaar.

I wouldn't call it chasing. Faruk (Kabir, director) had approached me for another part. He was wondering if I would even suit that role. I went to meet him and he narrated the entire story of the series. Later, I very sheepishly yet selfishly messaged him, ‘Listen, I think I am better suited for Mariam/Shristi’s role. Please let me know.’ He called back in a couple of days and said let’s do it.

The image of a spy in popular culture is commonly associated with a man. In fact, female spies are often labelled as ‘honey traps’. In the show, Mariam is an undercover agent married to a Pakistani general. Her track begins in a domestic context but, as the show progresses, her spectrum of activity widens. I am doing a lot in the show, including action. In fact, the character may or may not be rooted in a little bit of reality and history. It’s a wholesome role, and an equally patriotic one as the male counterparts.

What did years of long-form training teach you as an actor? A skill, attitude or temperament that you hold close?

I did television for almost nine years. It taught me both discipline and adaptability. Sometimes you get your lines on set and you have to just roll. It’s a practice that is still going on, even on feature films.

When I was doing Gold or Brahmastra, the first thing I needed to do was unlearn everything that I had learned before. Because every director's vision is different and the characters that you're playing are different. I believe I can wake up as a newcomer every single morning and pick things up from scratch. That’s something the years of television experience have given me.

After Brahmastra, your fans were hoping to see you in a wide variety of roles, in big, mainstream, theatrical films. But in the three years since, that transition hasn't happened...

I have sat and dwelt on it. After Brahmastra, I thought a lot more opportunities would come my way. And it didn't happen. One thing I realised was that my name wasn't being taken in a lot of rooms. There could be different reasons for that but that’s okay, because the inflow of work never stopped. I have done three shows on Hotstar (Sultan of Delhi, Showtime, Salaakar). I did Temptation Island. I was judging reality shows. I was dancing and doing songs. My schedule was packed; it wasn't like I was sitting at home with no work.

But didn't it affect your mindspace at all?

I refuse to think about it anymore. I am a happy, optimistic person and I am grateful for the career I've had. 10 or 15 years ago, I would have been praying for this life. I am happily married and settled. I will continue to do the work I am offered and give my 100 per cent. I am also lucky and grateful for the legions of fans I have. They have shown me unending support. They religiously watch everything that I do and are concerned about me.

Everything in life is a unity of time, space and action. I firmly believe no one gets anything before their time. So it’s pointless to worry. I can't lose perspective of what I have achieved, of all the doors that God has opened for me. To be sad would be ungrateful. Usko naashukree kehte hain.

Why do you think your name wasn't taken in a lot of rooms?

In the setting up of any project, actors are always the last in the food chain. A script gets locked. Then a production house comes, the makers come, the money and logistics get sorted. In the meantime, the director and the casting agent are considering a lot of actors who they think are fitting the bill. And unfortunately, if they can't visualise you for a part, you won't even receive a call for a look test or a meeting. What do you do? It's something that is not in your hands.

So you get slotted by your prior work—in your case, for instance, it's the supernatural or 'glamorous girl' tag.

The Bhootnii was my fifth supernatural outing after Devon Ke Dev...Mahadev, Naagin, Naagin 2 and Brahmastra. I've had different stages in my career (where I have been typecast). When I did Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, I was the girl-next-door, so I couldn't play the glam part. Then I did a reality show, Zaara Nachke Dikha, and suddenly everyone saw me as glamorous. Then I couldn't do anything but the glam part. I played a goddess and they said she can only look Indian, she can’t look Western. So I have wrestled with stereotypes all my life. My approach now is to look at the bigger picture and choose stories I like, even if the roles are supernatural, extra-celestial, extraterrestrial or whatever. As long as I'm not playing a Junoon again, as long as there are variations within that box, and if the director is showing conviction in me, I feel I can add something to the film.

Do you have funny, strange or upsetting audition stories?

So this was not even the main casting director. It was some casting agent. Every time I’d go for a round of audition, he’d be like, ‘Very good. Shortlisted. Top Three’. And he'd never call. I slowly realised this is the way it works. I got over it. And this is still the funny part. The worst is when they put you down. They think they're helping you by doing that. This guy was like, ‘You should not think about doing lead parts. Maybe your face worked for TV. It's not going to work for films and OTT.’ You listen to such advice and ignore it. They think they are showing you reality by saying that, but it’s just rude behaviour.