Nimrat Kaur on online chatter: "They move on to something spicier, I choose not to react, I have a family"

In a candid conversation with India Forums, surrounding her latest web series Kull: The Legacy of the Raisingghs, Nimrat Kaur opens up about navigating the often harsh and unrelenting glare of public opinion in the age of social media. As she delves into the emotional weight of portraying a complex character in a legacy-driven narrative, Kaur also reflects on her personal relationship with online criticism, vulnerability, and the importance of choosing silence over reaction.

Q: Talking about your career graph, starting from The Lunchbox and Airlift, we've seen you take it slowly. But after Airlift and especially Dasvi, things started picking up with great roles like Sajni, Skymers, and more. What actually changed during these years? How did things start happening for you?

A: There were two big changes. One was the OTT explosion post-COVID. Dasvi was released after the pandemic, though we shot it before the second wave. That film took almost a year because of the pandemic disruptions. It was finally released in 2022, I believe.

The other big change was that I didn't travel abroad to work as much. Apart from Foundation Season 2, which was just a small part, I stayed in India. And just by being here, I ended up working more. It coincided with receiving some wonderful scripts and opportunities, getting to work with people I had always wanted to collaborate with. And many are still on my bucket list!

Before COVID, I was abroad a lot. So every time I came back, I had to remind people that I'm here and working in India, not based in LA. That misconception existed for a while. But yes, it's been a great journey, and things are happening now.

Q: With roles like these, do you feel the gates are opening wider for even more opportunities? Especially after seeing the kind of work you've done recently?

A: Absolutely. I think female parts are becoming so different and interesting now. It's a very exciting time to be working as a female actor. I genuinely feel like I can manifest a role, and it will come to me in some form or another. It's a great time to be in the industry, especially with the OTT boom.

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But I chose not to react. I don't go off the handle, and I don't just, you know, react in a way I will regret. Because it's not just me, you know. I have a family back, and what is sometimes said online, and you know the kind of stuff that can come up, it can disturb a lot of people around me.

- Nimrat Kaur

Q: With exposure also comes attention, paparazzi, social media buzz, opinions. What's your take on this side of fame? Is it a phase, or do you feel it's a constant?

A: I don't think it's constant. It's cyclical. Sometimes the interest is positive, sometimes it turns negative. You know, because social media, portals, and online opinions are so important. Somewhere, if you just learn to walk with the awareness that everything is temporary or ends, people will have their opinions, they always have. And now they just have a way of expressing it, and then they move on to the next more exciting thing, and the more, of course, you know, the more spicy kind of a topic and whatever it might be. One just has to make sure that you don't make that your sort of day-to-day chatter in your mind.

Q: But does it affect you personally, in some way or another?

A: It does, of course. I'm not immune, and I am not thick-skinned. I wish I were, but I am not. And I also believe that that makes me a certain kind of artist because I am sensitive, because I can perceive things as what they are. And I do, I don't really have a choice, you know, in that. Some people are built differently, you know. But I chose not to react. I don't go off the handle, and I don't just, you know, react in a way I will regret. Because it's not just me, you know. I have a family back, and what is sometimes said online, and you know the kind of stuff that can come up, it can disturb a lot of people around me. But I chose to just stay away because I feel like anything that I respond to, I will be feeding. So when you don't want something alive, you just starve it. That's it. What I have learned, and that's what I have.

Q: What's a popular opinion in Bollywood that you completely disagree with?

A: The belief that there's a particular age for success. I've lived the counterexample. I don't believe age and success are connected in any way. And this isn't gender-specific, it applies to both men and women. I'm talking about artists, regardless of gender. Age should never define success.

Nimrat was last seen in the show 'Kull: The Legacy of the Raisingghs' which is streaming on Jio Hotstar now and also features Amol Parashar and Riddhi Dogra in pivotal roles.