Being a Maharashtrian, I’ve always been fascinated by folklore: Sharvari

As “Munjya” completed a year since its release in Hindi cinema, actress Sharvari celebrated the moment and said that being a Maharashtrian, she has always been fascinated by mythology and folklore.

She said: “Being a Maharashtrian, I’ve always been fascinated by mythology and folklore. I had heard of Munjya growing up, but when this script came to me, the level of detail and imagination just blew my mind.”

The actress said that she thoroughly enjoyed shooting for the film. Sharvari added: “We all had a great rapport on set which made things easy. Munjya was India’s first CGI actor... There was no character reference that we could see so we all had an imagination and we were acting/reacting on our own.” The idea of Marathi folklore becoming a big-scale Hindi film excited Sharvari instantly. She said: “And with Aditya Sarpotdar sir directing it, I was thrilled. I’ve seen most of his films and they have been mind-blowing. We also shot in the Konkan belt, and he was so well-versed with everyone there — the language, the terrain, the food, the delicacies. We learnt a great deal from him.”

Talking about the film, Sharvari said, “I still can’t believe it’s already been a year since Munjya released. Playing Bela was such a creatively fulfilling experience, but what truly took me by surprise was the overwhelming love audiences showed for our dance track ‘Taras.’”

“For someone just starting out, having a producer like Dinesh Vijan sir back me with such a big, high-energy number was surreal.” The actress said that she has only seen “established actors or dancing idols getting big dance numbers because they have the pull and the popularity to hook people’s interest.”

“It is a great pat on my shoulders that I can do it too and try to have a hit dance anthem to my credit!” Sharvari further shared, “To see Munjya cross the ₹100-crore mark and still be so loved a year later feels surreal. And the fan celebration today made it all even more special. Walking into the dance workshop and seeing their faces light up genuinely moved me.”

“I got to thank them in person for carrying Bela and ‘Taras’ with them over the past year. One of them even asked me to do the hookstep — and of course, I had to join in! We danced together, shared laughs, and they even surprised me with a sweet birthday gift for the film’s anniversary.” She said that it was one of those full-heart moments that reminded her exactly why she loves “being part of cinema.”

Munjya, a horror comedy also stars Abhay Verma, Sathyaraj and Mona Singh. The titular character was entirely created using CGI. It is the third installment in the Maddock Horror Comedy Universe and focuses on the legend of Munjya, inspired by Indian folklore and mythology.

Indo-Asian News Service