Mona Singh Reacts To Dark Side of Showbiz, Recalls 'Scary Meetings, Horrible Experiences' | Exclusive

Mona Singh and Sharman Joshi’s recent show, Kafas, has been making noise ever since it released on SonyLIV last Friday (June 23). An adaptation of the British mini-series, Dark Money, the web series explores the dark underbelly of the film industry. It revolves around a 15-year-old actor who gets sexually abused by a superstar, whose legal team then silences the former’s parents in lieu of Rs 10 crore. Mona is seen playing the young boy’s mother, who constantly struggles between right and wrong.

While Mona had earlier stated that she has never experienced casting couch in the entertainment industry, in an exclusive chat with News18, she reveals that she has been in multiple uncomfortable situations at the beginning of her year. Talking about it, she tells us, “I felt uncomfortable during the initial stage when I used to come to Bombay from Pune to audition. I met a lot of different kind of people and some were very weird. That was the time when you start backing off and understand that you aren’t in the right space or in the company of the right people.”

She points out that women, particularly, are at the receiving end of sleazy advances, but she never gave in to them for having realised the right and the wrong. “I was so young when I had started out. I was just 20-21, coming out of college and trying to do something in life. I was so new in the city. I was so naïve and vulnerable. But as women, our instincts are so sharp that we get to know who’s looking at us nicely and who’s not,” she remarks. Mona further adds, “I’ve had some scary meetings and horrible experiences initially. But I learnt to back off and get out of those situations.”

As for Kafas that sees her playing around with grey shades and wavering moral compass, the 41-year-old has been receiving raving reviews. Sharing her excitement, she says, “The feedback has been overwhelming. Social media these days is so powerful. It gives you instant gratification and that’s how you get to know to people’s opinion on your work. On my page, every day, I’m getting close to a thousand comments. It’s a beautiful feeling.”

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But is she someone who reads every comment on her social media? “I do. I also like them. People have asked me if I actually read the comments or just press the like button randomly. Everything matters and comments matter to me. I get personally involved with them,” the Laal Singh Chaddha (2022) and 3 Idiots (2009) actor states.

But along with being a boon, one can’t ignore the flip side of social media that has become a bed for incessant trolling. Mona acknowledges the same but confides that she turns a deaf ear to the all negativity. “As for the negative comments, I ignore them. I don’t take them to heart. I don’t take things too seriously. Some people will like you and some won’t and that’s absolutely alright. But those who like me, I appreciate their effort to write a comment. Thankfully, the percentage of those who like me is higher than the ones who don’t,” she says with a laugh.

But what works in her favour is not looking at social media as a part and parcel of her professional life. “I’m a very private person. I don’t like sharing everything with everybody. I put out only those things which I think can go public. Mostly, I like to keep to myself and when I’m not working, I like chilling and being with my family and friends. I take no pressure about posting things on social media,” remarks Mona.