What was film's fault: Mrunal Thakur on Vikas Bahl controversy

Actor Mrunal Thakur says she did not want "Super 30" to be affected by the sexual harassment allegations surrounding its director Vikas Bahl as many people worked hard on the project.

The "Queen" director was accused of sexual harassment by a former employee at the now dissolved Phantom Films, which had Bahl as one of the partners alongside Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane and Madhu Mantena.

Last month, Bahl was given a clean chit in the sexual harassment case following an internal inquiry by Reliance Entertainment, producer of "Super 30".

When asked whether the allegations against Bahl disturbed her, Mrunal told PTI, "I thought about it but I realised, 'what's the fault of the film?' The story is so wonderful, I have seen everyone working hard, while we were filming, everything was ok.

 

"I didn't want the film to be affected. I'm glad that after everything, things have been cleared and the film is releasing on July 12. Every film goes through ups and downs, I'm glad the film is getting what it deserves," she added.

"Super 30" is a biopic on Anand Kumar, a mathematics teacher from Bihar who opened a coaching institute to help underprivileged students prepare for competitive exams.

The trailer of the film was criticised for making Hrithik Roshan's face brown but Mrunal believes it was does to bring authenticity to the portrayal.

"More than the hair and the make up, what is important is to feel the character. I feel Hrithik has done an incredible job. Whenever I saw a glimpse of his performance as Anand Kumar, I thoroughly connected and enjoyed.

"I want people to just watch the film. To be honest, even I was tanned three shades darker in 'Love Sonia'. The fact that people were able to connect to my character was very important. Why should we not have that kind of make up?"

The actor said Hrithik was tanned even in "Agneepath" but nobody said anything at that time.

"We forget how great a performer he is because of his looks. He has felt the character thoroughly. Hair, make up, costumes, these are just devices. What is important for an actor is to feel the character, something which he has done in an incredible way," she said.