Actor Nithya Menen has come a long way. A reluctant actor, she was honoured with National Award for her stellar performance in the Tamil film Thiruchitrambalam (2022) this year. In a candid conversation with SCREEN, Nithya shared her thoughts on the award, and how she never wanted to act in films and initially found it challenging to cope with the attention. On Thiruchitrambalam becoming such a huge success, Nithya says, "It's difficult to put it in words. My co-awardee Manasi (Gujarati actress Manasi Parekh) truly expressed the feeling; she cried. That's how we all feel but she showed it. It is a special thing." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Nithya Menen (@nithyamenen) Awards, Nithya confesses, were never her primary focus. "Awards are not something I have been after at all, ever. I never even thought of it. I finish a film and move on to the next film. I don't even consider if a film of mine is a hit or flop, what I get out of it. None of it was a part of my thought process. It was always work." The National Award, however, holds a deeper significance for Nithya. "For someone with that mindset, the National Award means a lot. It healed a lot of things inside me." When probed further, she said, "You know I have always done things differently from the mainstream so it can get a bit exhausting sometimes. Every single fight feels like you are swimming upstream. So getting this kind of validation makes you feel okay (sighs), I am doing the right thing." View this post on Instagram A post shared by NFDC India (@nfdcindia) Nithya has consistently defied industry norms, opting for unconventional roles and projects. However, when asked if she feels the pressure to do more films, or do more mainstream movies, she says, "I don't feel the pressure to be in masala, mainstream films, because I don't like them as much. I don't watch them; I don't like them and don't feel I am missing out on anything." Instead, she craves meaningful storytelling, "I do feel like I am missing out on something when I see good films, or good filmmakers making films. Then I feel, 'Why did they not ask me?'." Is that why we don't see her in Bollywood even after winning hearts with films like Mission Mangal with Vidya Balan and Akshay Kumar and web series Breathe with Abhishek Bachchan? According to her, her selective approach has led to limited appearances in Bollywood films. She says, "It's different how it is positioned. In Hindi, I don't know if they are aware of my range or what I can do. There's also typecasting." However, with the rise of pan-Indian films, Nithya is open to collaborating with talented directors from across the country. "I want to work with nice directors who want to make good films. There are directors that I am very fond of, films that I am very fond of. Vikramaditya Motwane is one of them, Lootera is one of my favourite films. I think it is a masterpiece. I would love to work with people like that. I feel there is so much potential. What I have expressed till now is just the tip of the iceberg; somebody dig it up and give me something to do that can put all of it out there. I am waiting for that." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Nithya Menen (@nithyamenen) While Nithya's performances have been loved by the audiences and the critics equally, she never aspired to become an actress. She confesses, "I never wanted to be an actress. I had other dreams. It was a bit of a struggle. When you are not interested in being (an actress), it is not an easy place for someone who doesn't want it. So all the attention made me go into a shell. I didn't want it. Not many people understand this because people think one becomes an actor to get attention. But some of us do it because it's a talent, it's something we've been given and it is our way of expressing our emotions. It was too much for me. It had nothing to do with showbiz or entertainment, that was very far away from my personality. So I had to go against my nature. Like I don't like attention, I don't like lights, I don't like noise, I would like to be a wildlife filmmaker one day.”
