EXCLUSIVE Interview! Mona Singh on Munjya movie & ageism: ‘Women were scared of… | Not Just Bollywood

Once upon a time ageism was huge in Bollywood. Munjya actress Mona Singh talks about how with OTT, women’s roles are changing for good. Female actors now have the opportunity to experiment with different roles.

Directed by  Aditya Sarpotdar  and written (dialogue and screenplay) by Niren Bhatt, Munjya is a tale all the way from the mysterious and marvelous Konkan coast.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

Tell us about your experience of doing Munjya****, the preparation for the role and how scary was it?

The preparation is always the workshop. You see, we have various sessions of readings and workshops so that you don’t waste any time learning lines and learning what you’re going to do about your body language and stuff. So that was the prep. But, yes, when you shoot, when you’re shooting for a film which is, you know, so CGI influenced, you need to be more imaginative because most of the things that you see around you is green screen. So you don’t see the actual character of Munjya , you have to imagine.

How did you read up on the culture Mona, what is it like? 

So when filmmaker Aditya Sarpotdar approached me with the script, I had no idea about Munjya. I didn’t know that in the Konkan belt, there are these kinds of folklores. Yes, I’ve lived in Mumbai and Pune but I was not exposed to this culture. So when we were on sets, we had a lot of Marathi actors and everyone was from the same region. It was only the three of us that weren’t Marathi so we were just trying to understand what was going on. There were a lot of theatre actors from Pune, our director was a Marathi too. So everybody knows what is going on. So, I think it was very entertaining. It was a journey, you know, where we all picked up quite a few things of Maharashtrian culture, food, language and folklore. So for me, it was very interesting and a good learning experience.

How scary is Munjya?

 Since it’s a horror comedy, I can watch it. If it was an out and out horror movie, I don’t think I would have even been a part of it.

What do you have to say about the change brought about by the digital media in cinema? And the approach to cinema changing, not just a hero, heroine, or woman doing ornamental roles.

It’s now more about the ensemble cast. It’s not just a hero. Every character is important. Character’s journey also, you know, it is all coming together. This used to happen before, that it’s a commercial film about a Hero and all that. It’s becoming a lot more inclusive and we are becoming a lot more aware about the fact that we cannot underestimate our audiences anymore.

They were once told to leave their brains at home. Why? I don’t want to leave my brain at home and go for a movie. I want to enjoy the movie. I want to get into it. Like, this is a brilliant fantasy world. You get to learn so much about CGI. You get to learn so much about technicalities. For people aspiring to enter into this industry, it’s actually a great time. And, when OTT is concerned, I am so happy about the fact that, you know, people in India have embraced it so well. So, hence, the good content will reign.

I think it all started to change from lockdown. It was during lockdown that people started to consume OTT in a big way. Now you can play an array of characters, whatever you want to be. And there is no hero-heroine concept. And you can just be whoever you want to be.

Ageism used to be huge in Bollywood once upon a time but not anymore. Now everybody is playing lead roles even in theatrical roles, not just OTT. So what do you have to say about this beautiful change?

 It’s a beautiful change. You see earlier, women used to be scared of getting married because they used to think marriage would mean the end of their careers. They also used to hide their relationship. Now look at the new generation. Now look at women our age who are above 40. They’re just doing so well. Everybody’s playing a lead. I think it’s just become more open, more inclusive.

Meryl Streep used to say some 10-15 years ago about getting old and yet being cast to play the lead. And we used to keep thinking in India, when is that going to happen. When are we going to witness that change? And that’s gradually happening and I’m so happy about that. They are not cast to look negative or positive or even young. She has multiple layers, multiple shades and vulnerability also.

What next?

 I have multiple releases coming up, so I am very excited. There is a series called Paan Barta Sardaar. There are two movies, and then Munjya is coming out. My kitty is full.

WATCH the trailer of Munjya here: