Niharika NM, who first made her mark as a content creator, took her career to the global stage in 2023 with a guest voice role in the American comedy ‘Big Mouth Season 7’. Her journey as an actress began last year with the Tamil film ‘Perusu’ and then she starred in ‘Mithra Mandali’ and ‘Idhayam Murali’. He is now gearing up for his Bollywood debut, which will hit the screens on July 30.
Niharika NM opens up about her first days in Mumbai
The comedy film ‘Bhai Tera Star Hai’ stars Raghav Juyal, with Niharika as his love interest. In an interaction with News18 about his move into films, he recalled, “When I moved to Mumbai three-four years ago, I spent three years training in a production house. I had gone to film school and had a background in theatre.”“I definitely wanted to give acting a try. I didn’t know how far I would go or what exactly I wanted to do. All I knew was that I was passionate about it and I enjoyed it,” she adds. However, she eventually decided to stop pursuing Bollywood and focused on auditioning in the southern film industries, a move she attributes to Hindi cinema’s unrealistic beauty standards.“I first tried it with Hindi films, but I didn’t like the standards set for women: how they should look or what their skin tone should be. I thought that was not the space I should fight in. It was also a very crowded space,” says Niharika. He then signed a three-film deal with Karthik Subbaraj’s production house Stone Bench Films.
Niharika NM on her biggest regret
“But halfway through my training process with them, I turned down really good south films that did wonders at the box office. I couldn’t believe it! I was contractually obligated. That will remain one of my biggest regrets. But I’m happy for whoever did it. And once the contract was over, no one stopped me. Then I did phelo-ed as raita in different language films,” shares Niharika.
Niharika NM on facing rejection in the industry
The trip, however, was not easy for her. “There were so many reasons why I was rejected from the movies. At this point it all sounds hilarious,” he exclaims. Recalling one episode, he says, “There was a particular film I was supposed to do. This great director was making it. I grew up watching it. He chose me personally. He had auditioned for the role. The appearance test was done.”“The contract was sent to my house and I had signed it. There was a privacy clause in it and I had told them that I didn’t feel comfortable doing intimacy on screen. They were okay with that and were planning to go ahead with a body double. But the actor didn’t agree to do the scene with a body double. He wasn’t interested. It was his decision. Then it became an either/or situation,” adds Niharika.
More about ‘Bhai Tera Star Hai’
The film follows Ajay Singh, a London dreamer convinced that he is destined to be Bollywood’s next big superstar. The narrative unfolds over the course of a chaotic night as he pursues fame through hilarious misadventures and grand ambitions. It stars Raghav Juyal as Ajay Singh alongside Niharika NM, Sanjay Kapoor, Barkha Singh, Vivan Bhatena and Parvathy Omanakuttan.
