Actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas’ revelation last month about being cornered in the industry as one of the reasons to venture out of Bollywood and try her luck in the West left everyone surprised. And now, actor Manisha Koirala, who has been in the industry for more than three decades, says she has experienced the same too, not once but “multiple times”.

The actor, who is currently working on the show Heeramandi with filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali, shares, “All of us, at some point or another, have [faced being cornered], some people more, some people less. Actors, actresses, filmmakers, writers, producers... all of us have faced struggles, disappointments, political games, pulling your leg, camping and b*tch*ng. To say nobody has had a problem in their career is a joke! But yes, some people have a greater attitude towards life, and they do not believe in being victims, sharing a sob story, and all that. It doesn’t mean that their challenges were any less.”

Ask her about how she dealt with the issue when she faced it in her career and Koirala says, “I shed my tears in private, and I promised myself I was going to work harder. I feel these are the things that push you to shine even more, rather than breaking you.”

But how does one come out of such a phase where people don’t let you get good work because you are cornered? The 52-year-old says, “Knowing that nothing is permanent, and whatever the problems that one is facing, taking them up as a challenge and mastering your craft.”