I feel sad for people who spread rumours: Nithya Menen

The actor tells Ikyatha Yerasala about her latest role and how she called out a portal for writing fake news.

Actor, singer, and producer Nithya Menen has donned many hats. She is soaking in a plethora of compliments for portraying Srimathi in the latest web series ‘Kumari Srimathi’, which is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Set in a small town called Ramaraju Lanka, the series, created by Srinivas Avasarala, follows the story of an enterprising Kumari Srimathi. She is a 30-year-old unmarried woman, who dreams of opening a bar in her hometown. 

In a candid tête-à-tête with Showtime, Nithya talks about the series, her thoughts on marriage and more.

How was it to work with the ‘Kumari Srimathi’ team? What are the kind of responses you have received so far?

The makers approached me and narrated the story of a small-town girl who wanted to start a bar. It was a fresh concept and I agreed to do it as I like doing stories that are positive and fun, unlike the dark and intense content that we’ve been seeing of late. It was lovely working with director Gomtesh Upadhye, who is from Bengaluru. It was easy and fun to work with the team. The response from the audience has been positive — a lot of them are finding the show really cute and refreshing.

As a single woman in her 30s, have you ever felt the pressure to get married like Srimathi?

I have never felt so much pressure because of how independent I am. I did hear comments from people when I was in my 20s, but my parents would always support me and speak up for me.

More than the institution of marriage, I believe in finding the right person and for that to happen, you need to know yourself first. The focus of life is not to get married, but to be happy, productive and live up to your full potential. 

Your Malayalam web series ‘Masterpeace’ will release on October 25. Tell us a bit about it. 

It’s a cool web series and will be extremely relatable. ‘Masterpeace’ is an out-and-out comedy and a satirical take on the generation gap between conservative parents and their children. The series tells the story of how a couple deals with their parents coming over to their house and creating a big ruckus. The story has been treated differently, and the director Sreejith is talented. It will release on Hotstar.

As for other projects, I’m currently shooting a Hindi film in Scotland. I’m also shooting for a Tamil film which has Jayam Ravi and me in the lead. It’s being directed by Kiruthiga Udayanidhi and is a cute romantic comedy. 

You recently called out an online entertainment portal for posting fake news stating that you were harassed by a Tamil actor. How did you deal with the situation?

Honestly, it didn’t shake me up. I wrote what came to my mind instantly. My first thought was: “Why do human beings do such things to each other and why would anyone want to pull someone down?” I feel sad for people who spread such rumours.

This is the first time I chose to respond to fake news about me. Earlier, there were rumours about how I had problems with everybody during the ‘Bheemla Nayak’ shoot — the news was not true. I had a great time shooting for the film and Trivikram is a dear friend.

I’ve been made to look like someone who’s not easy to work with. There are always people who create such news and others who consume such gossip. I wanted to hold the portal accountable for spreading false news, and I decided to speak up for myself. When you don’t hold people accountable, they continue to indulge in such behaviour.