Actor Medha Shankr, who is celebrating her birthday today, says this year is especially meaningful following the success of her debut as a female lead in 12th Fail. Shankr, who is turning 27 this year, plans to travel to Alibaug with close friends and family for the occasion. “It’s a special birthday for me. We have booked a villa where we’ll spend time playing table tennis, badminton and enjoy delicious food. It will be a three-day staycation. We are doing it around Mumbai so that we can take our dog Laila.”
Reflecting on her role, Shankr continues, “12th Fail was such a massive success. People loved my character so much that they etched my image as Shraddha Joshi in their minds.”
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However, she is cautious about being typecast. “It took me some time to transition into who I really am, away from Shraddha’s character. On Instagram, my audience said ‘oh, we only want to see you as that character’, and then I took some time to transition even on social media so as to not scare my audiences. But, I don’t want to be stereotyped.”
So, is she on a break? Shankr explains that while there are projects coming her way, she is selective with scripts. “I really want to challenge myself with the kind of stories I am choosing. I want to break the previous image that I have created in the new film that I sign so that the next film hopefully is a role that is very different from what I have played so far. Of course, at the same time working with different actors and directors is also on my mind,” she says, adding, “I want my filmography to be a mixed bag of all kinds of films. I have always been inclined towards meaty parts which are performance-oriented. Where the girl’s character has a lot to say. Then there are also some directors I really want to work with. If that happens, the script really does not matter much and it is up to the director.”
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But isn’t she apprehensive of being out of sight, out of mind? Shankr tells us, “As long as you are putting out great work instead of just being in the eyes of people, I am fine. That matters to me more.”
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Excited about the buzz around 12th Fail being in contention for the National Awards, Shankr says, “I am happy that there are so many people who are rooting for us. Whether we win or we don’t, the love that we have received for the film and our performances is everything that I ever wanted. While saying that, I really do hope we win. It’s going to be massive.”
She further says: “When we were shooting, there was this moment during Vikrant’s performance when I said, ‘I am manifesting a national award for you’.” “I could feel even then that there is something very magical about the film. But there are so many other contenders too who are brilliant. I am really stoked to see what happens,” Shankr wraps up.
