Swastika Mukherjee is glad that people noticed her work in 2020. “Last year was amazing work wise. Paatal Lok (web series) and Dil Bechara put me on the national map. A lot of appreciation came my way from the masses, critics and all kinds of audiences,” says the actor, adding both projects “happened” over the last three years and people felt the impact as they released one after the other.

She also had two significant Bengali releases on OTT platforms and adds that in the recent years, she has been conscious about not repeating herself. “My goal is to not do the same kind of roles, not look the same on screen, not repeat myself. I’ve always tried to present myself in a new way to the audience. I don’t want to just be on screen,” she shares.

Talking about her foray into Hindi projects, Mukherjee reveals it has been a long 20-year journey. “I started with TV and shifted to movies. I did some hardcore films, later sensible cinema came my way. I shot for Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! (2015) but I had so much work in Bengal that I didn’t want to leave everything and try Bollywood. I’ve tried to balance both Bengali and Hindi projects and in the last two to three years, I’ve been getting many offers from Mumbai. I don’t want to do something for the heck of it. I am an established brand in my industry and I don’t want to do mediocre work just for the Bollywood stamp,” she says.

Mukherjee emphasises that she wants to make a mark with her talent rather than being everywhere and going with the idea that “I am also doing Bollywood. I’ve been slow and steady and it has paid off well. After watching the recent Hindi web shows, a large non-Bengali audience watched my Bengali work. That was a bonus,” she concludes.