‘Female Leads Have Always Been Made To Fit Into A Box’

‘They
have
to
be
good
looking,
they
have
to
smile
pretty,
look
pretty,
sit
pretty…’‘Being
other
characters
allows
for
a
greater
mining
and
excavation
of
the
human
condition
rather
than
just
trying
to
play
a
prototype
really
well.’

After
almost
a
decade
long
journey
into
Bollywood,

Niharika
Lyra
Dutt
finally
found
her
footing
with
the
positive
reception
for

Call
Me
Bae.

The
actor
left
a
mark
as
the
feisty
bestie
Tammarrah
in
the
series
headlined
by
Ananya
Panday.

Her
winning
streak
continued
with
another
streaming
show

Doctors
that
put
her
acting
talent
in
spotlight.

After
a
fruitful
2024,
Niharika
is
hopeful
for
“better
work
in
the
future”.

“People
don’t
understand
that
getting
your
first
project
is
hard,
and
then
getting
your
first
breakthrough
project
is
also
hard.
But
post
that,
getting
the
next
project
is
damn
bloody
difficult.
Especially
when
you’re
at
a
stage
where
scripts
are
not
being
sent
to
you,
people
don’t
want
your
opinion
on
it…
I’m
nobody’s
family
member;
that
privilege
is
not
afforded
to
me,”
Niharika
tells

Mayur
Sanap/Rediff.com.

It’s
been
10
years
for
you
in
the
industry
and
your
breakthrough
work
happened
only
last
year.
When
you’re
trying
to
create
a
space
for
yourself
in
the
industry,
is
there
a
feeling
of
disorientation
when
things
don’t
work
out
in
your
favour?
How
do
you
keep
yourself
anchored?

Oh
my
God,
of
course,
there
is
a
feeling
of
disorientation.

The
closer
you
get
to
the
heart
of
the
industry,
the
more
you
realise
that
there’s
a
machinery
that
constantly
pumps
out
a
lot
of
money
by
the
people
who
have
that
money.

Therefore,
it
creates
visibility
for
them
to
be
able
to
be
more
loved.

That
can
get
overwhelming
sometimes
when
you
ask
yourself,
will
I
be
able
to
do
the
machinery?
Do
I

want
to
do
the
machinery?

I
also
wonder
if
people
will
take
a
chance
on
me.

I
look
back
at
my
journey
and
have
faith
in
myself
and
in
the
decisions
I’ve
made.
Hopefully,
that
will
take
me
forward.

At
other
points,
I
have
to
remind
myself
that
I
love
acting,
so
I
don’t
want
to
pigeonhole
myself.

I
won’t
call
myself
a
character
actor.
But
I
feel
like
having
the
ability
to
be
a
lot
more
than
just
the
lead
is
much
more
interesting,
acting
and
writing
wise.

I
feel
like
the
writing
of
the
female
leads
have
always
been
like
there’s
a
box
in
which
they
have
to
fit.
They
have
to
be
good
looking,
they
have
to
smile
pretty,
look
pretty,
sit
pretty…

Being
other
characters
allows
for
a
greater
mining
and
excavation
of
the
human
condition
rather
than
just
trying
to
play
a
prototype
really
well.

I’m
hungry
to
work
with
incredible
individuals.

My
partner
or
my
parents
remind
me
of
this
that
if
you
just
put
your
head
down
and
work
hard,
then
your
work
will
speak
for
itself,
and
the
right
people
will
seek
you
out.

I
am
waiting
for
such
people,
I
guess.
(Smiles)

Does
it
cross
your
mind
that
because
we
have
seen
you
only
on
streaming
so
far,
you
might
get
labelled
as
an
OTT
actor?

I’ve
just
done
a
film,
where
it’s
not
the
lead
but
a
very
important
part.

I’ve
never
wanted
something
really
badly
and
then
been
disappointed.
I’ve
worked
in
hope
for
the
opportunity
to
work.

So
when
this
film
came
to
me,
I
felt
like,
Inshallah,
I
will
get
better
work
in
the
future.

Whether
it
will
be
on
OTT
or
in
films,
again,
I
feel
like
the
right
people
will
recognise
it
and
collaborate.

What
are
the
struggles
to
land
your
next
opportunity,
especially
when
you
are
not
from
the
industry?

People
don’t
understand
that
getting
your
first
project
is
hard,
and
then
getting
your
first
breakthrough
project
is
also
hard.

But
post
that,
getting
the
next
project
is
damn
bloody
difficult.
Especially
when
you’re
at
a
stage
where
scripts
are
not
being
sent
to
you,
people
don’t
want
your
opinion
on
it…

I’m
nobody’s
family
member;
that
privilege
is
not
afforded
to
me.

I
am
just
excited
about
the
auditions
that
come
my
way.
I
look
at
it
as
a
probability
game.

Suppose,
I’ve
got
five
auditions.
I
ask
myself:
Are
all
five
good
parts
in
great
projects
with
great
directors?
If
yes,
then
even
if
I
get
a
call
back
from
two
of
them,
I’m
happy.

Spirituality
also
helps
here.

I
believe
that
the
best
thing
for
me
will
align
at
the
right
time.

Your
Instagram
handle
says
‘Magniloquent
Spoony’.
How
do
these
words
sync
with
your
personality?

It’s
from
a
book
called

Less.
It’s
a
wonderful
book,
you
should
look
it
up.

The
protagonist
is
this
queer
author
who
has
been
reviewed
on
his
new
book,
and
the
critic
calls
him
a
‘magniloquent
spoony’.

It’s
a
funny
moment
because
in
the
beginning,
he
thinks
it’s
a
huge
compliment
and
the
only
compliment
that
he
has
gotten
for
the
book.

When
he
looks
up
the
dictionary,
‘magniloquent’
means
someone
who
speaks
in
bombastic
language,
someone
who
uses
very
heavy
vocabulary
and
a
‘spoony’
is
someone
who
is
foolishly
amorous.

When
I
read
that,
I
was
like,
that’s
me.