When Mouni Roy left India for UAE in March to spend time with her sister and her family, she’d never imagined that the brief visit would last for more than seven months. While she was in Abu Dhabi, her mother and brother were in Cooch Behar. “We talk on video calls every day. That keeps me going,” says the actress.

She hasn’t returned to India yet, despite travel restrictions being eased, because she had a shoot in the UK and work commitments in Dubai. “Before I knew it, it was my birthday and I flew to Maldives to bring it in with three of my friends. Besides, Cooch Behar is far safer than Mumbai at the moment, so my brother and mother aren’t willing to return home yet. But I’ll be back in October for sure,” Mouni promises.

During the ongoing Coronavirus-triggered pandemic, when people are cooped up at home, the actress has travelled across three countries—UAE, United Kingdom and Maldives. She points out that while Dubai and UK are similar in their approach to the pandemic, Abu Dhabi is way stricter. “If we need to step out of my sister’s home and go only as far as Dubai, we need to get a swab test done at the border. Unless it’s negative, you can’t enter,” she shares.

They opted for Maldives as it has zero Covid cases. “As soon as you reach, they ask you to change and a doctor arrives to do a test. Results come the next morning and only then are you allowed to walk freely on the island, even without masks,” she recounts.

Quiz her on her shoot in the UK and Mouni says it went off smoothly despite first-day jitters. “Nobody knew what to expect, but everyone followed the rules with only one department present on set at a time. If the lights team was working, the direction team wasn’t there. There were separate holding areas, so not many people were together at one place. Plus, there were compulsory swab tests every week,” she rattles off, adding, “In the last seven months, my nose and throat have been swabbed around seven times, it’s uncomfortable and painful, but necessary. Luckily, no one fell ill on our set.”

Ask Mouni on her lockdown experience and she reveals that since her sister, Anisha, has two kids aged four and seven, and lives with her in-laws who are 75 and 69, they weren’t allowed out for the first two-and-a-half months. “But very early on, I decided not to be a couch potato. I’d wake up early, mediate, help with chores and my nephews’ homework. I also started painting, took Gita classes and did lots of yoga,” she shares, adding that her cooking skills have also improved. “I hated going into the kitchen, now I try recipes shared by my mother, aunts and even my friends’ mothers-in-law,” she laughs.

Mouni has found solace in her art which, for her, has been the most fulfilling way to channel her energy. “I made a lot of Shivji and Krishna Radha paintings, along with a girl dancing, people reading in meadows and on top of trees and a moonrise,” she informs, quick to add that she isn’t ready for an exhibition yet. “But since it brings happiness, I won’t stop painting.”

Meanwhile, the actress is waiting to reunite with the rest of her family but it will be difficult staying away from her nephews now. “Every morning, they run into my room, hold my face in their beautiful little hands and say ‘Mouni maasi, we’ll miss you.’ I think I’ll miss them more,” she signs off emotionally.