I want to assess myself & take up roles that feel undeniable: Preity Mukhundhan

As she gears up for a packed year of releases, Preity Mukhundhan opens up about stepping into action territory with Blast and the diverse range of projects she has lined up. Excerpts from the conversation:

‘THIS IS A NEW SPACE FOR A TAMIL GIRL TO PLAY IN A FILM’
My character in Blast is fierce, unafraid and is trained in martial arts. I’ve explored something that hasn’t been done a lot in Tamil cinema. It’s more of what we have seen of the mass heroes all these years. So, it is a new space for a Tamil girl to play in a film.

‘AGENT TINA WAS THE FIRST REFERENCE I WENT FOR’
After I signed the film, I watched a lot of action films where women also did action. Agent Tina (a character from Vikram ) was the first reference I went for. I also learnt karate and had many rehearsals with the fight masters to understand the technique and execute a scene properly.

‘THE STORIES I’M CHOOSING ARE FRESH, AND THE ROLES DIFFERENT’
In Idhayam Murali , I play a quintessential heroine. Whereas in Dashamakan , I play a young, naive girl. I’m also doing a film with Ashok Selvan, in which I play an emotionally intense and mature role. The stories I’m choosing right now are fresh, and the roles are quite different from each other. I’d also like to explore Hindi cinema.

‘I WANT TO SLOW DOWN A BIT’
I’m at a phase where I want to slow down a bit, see how my films (she is expecting five to six movies to release this year) are received and assess myself before I take up more projects. People expect me to do more commercial heroine-esque roles. But right now, I want to take up opportunities that feel undeniable.

‘I like Arjun sir’s intensity; Abhirami ma’am is sorted’
Arjun sir is a veteran. There’s a quiet intensity that he holds, which, when you see on screen, is very powerful. I really like that. Abhirami ma’am is calm and sorted. As for me, I’m someone who gets stressed. Though I work well under pressure, I’ve grown to realise that it does, somewhere, affect you. When you approach it more like a meditation, you are able to perform better.