Actor Meenakshi Jayan on her award-winning performance in ‘Victoria’: I can place myself on big stages

Actor Meenakshi Jayan says she often dreamt about winning an international award for acting — the excitement when her name is announced, embracing the people sitting next to her, and slowly walking up the stairs. Suddenly, the dream turns into a nightmare — the stage comes crashing down, stairs break, and the actor falls. “My mind would start playing tricks. I was never able to place myself on a big stage. It once felt like I never belonged there,” says the actor and winner of the best actress award in the Asia New Talent category at the Shanghai International Film Festival 2025 for her performance in Victoria.

“But now, I can place myself on big stages,” says Meenakshi over WhatsApp from Shanghai. The actor played the titular role in Victoria, directed by Sivaranjini J essaying the internal struggles of a young beautician who plans to elope with her Hindu boyfriend after her Catholic family finds out about the relationship, while she is forcibly entrusted to take care of a rooster.

source:thehindu.com