Exclusive! Mrunal Thakur Talks About Toofan, Working With Farhan Akhtar, And How We Need To Redefine Masculinity
It’s not a stretch to assume one of the titles on your last weekend’s watchlist was Toofan on Amazon Prime Video. Directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, the film has Farhan Akhtar playing a local street thug, Aziz Ali aka Ajju, who gets turned onto the path of being a professional boxer by a bunch of well wishers, chief amongst them Ananya (played by Mrunal Thakur), a doctor at the local hospital. And despite messing up his first chance at glory, Ananya finds a way to motivate Ajju once again, to give himself and his passion, a second chance.
NGL, when I saw the trailer for Toofan, my immediate assessment of the character played by Mrunal Thakur was “Ah, here’s another female character who only exists to support her man. Why am I not surprised?” Fortunately, for both me (as an audience) and the film, the character of Ananya does have more to do than just whisper motivational quotes in Ajju’s ear. And Mrunal plays Ananya with an earnestness that saves the character from being annoying or problematic (though I do wish we had a different ending for her arc!).
In the wake of the film’s world premiere, I had a conversation with Mrunal Thakur about her character, Ananya in Toofan, working with the likes of Farhan Akhtar, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Paresh Rawal and more, the controversy surrounding the film’s religion angle, and her take on gender issues like toxic masculinity in our society. Read on!
Q: What excited you about your character, Ananya, in Toofan? Weren’t you concerned it would be just another ‘supporting girlfriend/wife’ character?
A: You know, I when I got the opportunity to work with Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, the only thought in my mind was to be associated with him in some way. Because whenever he makes movies, they’re a masterpiece. I didn’t care about how big or small, how impactful or less impactful my role was; all I knew was that I needed to be a part of this film. And sone pe suhaga dekho, Ananya was just such a good character! She even has a song on her name!
I am also grateful to the writers, who wrote Ananya as a very real character, which is rare. I think real is rare in today’s time. Ananya wants to bring out the best in people and believes that life is too short. So rather than being hung up on problems, why not just enjoy it and spread love. Love feels like such a small word, but at the same time, the people who spread love are doing something huge, especially with the pandemic still being a part of our lives. They are my heroes.
Q: Farhan Akhtar is a multi-hyphenate—filmmaker, producer, actor, musician. What was it like working with him, and watching the synergy between him and director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra unfold?
A: Wow, that felt like an institution in itself! I was learning so many things between takes from both of them. What was beautiful to watch was that despite Farhan being a filmmaker himself, I saw him surrendering as an actor to Rakeysh. He [Farhan] is like this curious child who always wants to explore.
And having worked together before [in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag], there was this understanding between Farhan and Rakeysh, where not everything was said in words. Woh aankhon hi aankhon mein samajh lete the! I have learnt a lot during these press junkets about their experience during their last collaboration. And I can tell you, Farhan Akhtar is a person who doesn’t believe in shortcuts. The amount of dedication he put in inspired me to put my 200% to try and match up!
Also Read: Toofan Review: Farhan Akhtar, Mrunal Thakur Film Is A No Frills Story Of Second Chances And The Reformative Power Of Love
Q: The film’s supporting cast has Paresh Rawal, Dr. Mohan Agashe, and Supriya Pathak, all incredible actors. How was that learning experience?
A: I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous I was shitting bricks, if I can say that! But they took me under their wing and comforted me. And when they saw that I was curious to learn from them, they answered all of my numerous questions and kept feeding me their experiences and viewpoints to help me get better.
You know I feel blessed to have worked with such secure actors who didn’t just care about doing their, but treated the scene as “our scene,” coming up with ways to make it better for all of us.
Q: Toofan has a heavy religion angle, and it had already began courting controversies before release. Did you have any apprehensions about that when you read the script?
A: As an actor, whenever I choose a film, these things don’t matter. I see it as a character that’s been given to me and I have to make it believable. My job is to entertain my audience, to let them know what is happening in our society, and see if I can through my work, make this place a better world to live in.
That being said, we sometimes start judging the book by its cover, when what we need to do is to take the best things from it. I really hope Toofan inspires people in the right way once they watch it.
Q: I saw on Instagram that you’re a huge Justin Baldoni fan, who has, in his book Man Enough, talked about toxic masculinity and what being a man really means in today’s context. What is your take on how our society needs to change the way it perceives men and their emotions?
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A: Well, the first thing to remember is that even men are humans, right? They have emotions. And society constantly tells them to suppress their emotions. There are times when men want to cry and vent but we don’t allow them to do that. You know, those typical conversations like, “Kya ladki ki tarah ro raha hai?”
Society has these gender rules. Men can’t have long hair. Women can’t have short hair. I’ve had conversations with other girls who told me, “We can’t cut our hair because our family/ in-laws, or our husband don’t like it.” But it has to be the person’s choice on what they want to do, how they want to feel.
It’s a very small thing but in the film, you’ll see how Ananya gives Ajju the space to feel those emotions. They say choose your life partner carefully, because they can make or break you. And Ananya does introduce Ajju to this better version of himself, showing him that he can be so much more than a street fighter with zero dignity and respect, that he can be a boxer who has both those things.
We all need such a person in our lives. In fact, I hope that can be one of the takeaways from Toofan for the audience, that we try and be those people who help our loved ones become better versions of themselves.
Also Read: Netflix’s Ray: Ali Fazal, Shweta Basu Prasad, Shruthy Menon On ‘Forget Me Not’, Humans Playing God, And The Dark Spin On A Satyajit Ray Classic
Q: You’ve had quite the career trajectory as an actor who began in television and moved on to films. Currently, both these industries are undergoing a massive change in terms of form and function. What is Mrunal Thakur, the actor, looking forward to?
A: I just want to be true to my audience. I want to be as real as I can because I believe that real is rare and I want to be rare. I want to be known as a versatile actress for the work that I do. I want to learn from every single experience. I feel like all the films that I do, it’s like a thali filled with different kinds of ‘pakwaan’. And I want to enjoy each and every bite of it!
Q: What do you hope the audience takes away from Toofan?
A: I want the audience to watch the film with an open mind. Toofan isn’t just a film about boxing; it’s also a romance, also about a relationship between a guru and a shishya. It’s full of entertainment and there’s a devotional song too, a Ganesh aarti that I know my parents will definitely play during Ganesh Chaturthi this year! So, I’m happy that through the film, we’d be able to make the audience laugh, cry and celebrate.
As for the boxing in the film, I do hope that the film inspires people who’ve had to give up on their passion for whatever reason to get back into it!
Toofan, directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra and starring Farhan Akhtar, Mrunal Thakur and Paresh Rawal, is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
