Rasika Dugal believes that the most special projects happen when you least expect them. Just when she was ready to take a break, the actor was offered Rohan Sippy’s adaptation of the American series, Unreal.

“I wanted to take some time off, read, and watch movies. Rohan called me for the show, and I have always wanted to work with him,” begins Dugal. A week after the call, she was facing the camera for the Indian adaptation, which also stars Aadar Jain and depicts the behind-the-scenes working of a reality show.

“It was really last minute on the project. But in the madness, I found a part that no one has offered me. My character is snappy, sarcastic, and has a sharp sense of humour. The sarcasm and quickness of the original is present. I liked the series so much that I got bangs for it,” she laughs.

If 2024 has offered Dugal something new, there’s also something old in store. She has wrapped up the shoot of the third season of Mirzapur. Even though she has been playing Beena Tripathi—a quiet homemaker who knows how to get her way in a male-dominated household—in the crime drama for eight years, becoming her all over again was a challenge.

“I’m never prepared enough for Beena. Our characters keep evolving. The journey between the seasons is transformative, so you have to reflect that lapse. Beena is so interesting. [But before reprising the role] I sometimes worry that I have forgotten her. Here, I have to credit the writing that helped me understand the woman. Once, writer Puneet Krishna told me, ‘Aapne sab achche se kiya. The beauty is that you played Beena with dignity’. Before every season, I remind myself of the best compliment I have ever got. I tell myself, ‘Don’t forget to play her with dignity.’”

Adding to the diverse worlds she is inhabiting this year is Kartavya. Shah Rukh Khan’s production, headlined by Saif Ali Khan and her, is reportedly an investigative thriller. Even as she is tight-lipped about the project, she can’t help but underline that it has nourished her as an actor.

“I had a ball shooting for it. I want roles that will take the life out of me. I want to be so depleted that I have nothing to give for a bit.”