“Dabangii – Mulgii Aayi Re Aayi”, which is produced by Nilanjana P and Herumb Khot’s Invictus T Mediaworks, recently took a leap of 14 years. The audience now sees a grown-up Arya who has sworn to take revenge for her mother’s death. Actress Rachana Mistry came on-board Arya post the leap and revealed that she loves her character’s fearless attitude.

“I love her Dabangii nature, no matter who is in front of her. I love her courage. To fight for the right and the way Arya does it, I enjoy playing that part. Every girl has that Dabangii inside her and I really feel that. It gives a different kind of freedom in your head, and it lets you be,” she said.

Talking about Arya, she said that since the show has taken a leap, she needs to justify the journey her character went through and that can be challenging. She added, “I feel every day presents a different challenge. I have to justify the journey she has had. Getting it right is a challenge every day. She has done such a remarkable job that it is challenging for everyone to portray. For now, I want to accurately convey her emotions towards Satya, Aai, Baba, Jaan Kaka, and everyone else.”

Rachana also confessed that there is always performance pressure post the leap, especially to make the audience connect to the new version of the character.

“There is pressure on the new story that is coming forward, and it is your responsibility to make the audience connect with you and your performance. Post leap to play that character and justify that is a pressure. I take it very sportingly as it’s good to feel that responsibility and pressure. Even the audience should keep an open mind towards the fact that it’s a journey, and she is not going to be literally the same as the behaviour changes as we grow up,” she said.

“I keep asking Maahi about things from her past and how she used to talk, and I always try to imagine the young Arya. There is a twist to it, and she has anchored her Dabangii nature in the right direction, so I don’t want to lose that touch, but I want to make sure that her maturity is evident. The pressure to get that right is immense. The little feet have left such big footprints, and it is going to be a task,” she added.

While she shared that the preparation for her character is an ongoing process, she thanked the producers along with the director and creatives for helping her with it. She further said that her experience with the production banner has been great so far, and added, “They are very professional and accommodating. It’s been 10 days since we have been shooting, and the whole team is very polite. They are very considerate about your personal life as well and that is very rarely found. They are very understanding and understand the reasons for your adjustment. They are such nice people. I like the way they are so thoroughly involved.”

What can the audience expect from your character next? “You can expect a beautiful twist in Arya and a different kind of spin on her personality. You will see a very different side of her. She is the same Dabangii girl but with a hint of maturity and sensibility. I hope that I can pull off half of the cuteness that Maahi has on screen,” she concluded.