There are days where things are not going my way. I feel helpless, dejected and rejected.’
‘But then what do you do? You wake up, dust it off and go.’
Key Points
‘Something or the other leads up to something bigger or better, whether you realise it or not. I hope Musafir Cafe opens up many, many doors for me.’
‘As actors, we don’t know what our next week, next month, next couple of days look like. Reality has taught me that nothing is permanent.’
‘I have dreamt big all my life. And I will make sure that nothing comes in the way of my dream.’
Mahima Makwana has spent most of her life in front of the camera.
She began acting as a child, went on to become a familiar face on television with shows such as Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke, and made her Hindi film debut with the Salman Khan-produced Antim: The Final Truth in 2021.
With her latest streaming show Musafir Cafe, Mahima finds herself receiving a kind of love and fame she didn’t see with any of her outings before.
The show’s success has led to the announcement of a second season, with Mahima returning as Preeti alongside Vikrant Massey and Vedika Pinto.
“Nothing has been given to me on a platter, so you make the platter yourself,” Mahima tells Mayur Sanap/Rediff.
How have the last days been since Musafir Cafe dropped on OTT?
I am overwhelmed in the best way possible! I am getting all kinds of love.
I love it!
You celebrated your birthday on August 5 amid the release of Musafir Cafe. Did it feel like a double celebration?
I had a very simple birthday because I wanted to be home, spend time with my dog, keep my phone aside and just be quiet because there’s so much noise around me right now. It’s great but I wanted some peace.
I wanted to soak it all in, everything that’s happening around me. I just wanted to be quiet and not talk to anybody and just be thankful.
I was home having my chai, just the usual morning. That is such a luxury, right? I mean, not doing anything. Peace and calmness is such a luxury.
And, you know, Season 2 was announced on my birthday!
It was a surprise for all of us, just as the audience, because we did not see it coming. It was never on paper.
What do you miss most about Preeti?
I think I have carried her in my heart and wish to imbibe so many qualities from her, whether it is about her having a big heart, whether it is about her loving unconditionally, or just her presence.
We all need Preeti in our lives, who just makes our life more beautiful. I feel Preeti makes Chander’s life so much easier, in every way possible.
We all want somebody to believe in us. We all want somebody to push ourselves to dream big. I’m not going to miss anything about her because she’s with me.
But I think I’m going to miss the mountains.
I can’t wait to go back to the mountains and see what’s in store for her. It’s the writer’s call, but I would love to explore everything that happened in her life before Musafir Cafe happened.
‘Audiences have given me the liberty and privilege to dream even bigger’
IMAGE: Vikrant Massey, Mahima Makwana, Vedika Pinto in Musafir Cafe.
Like Preeti, would you sacrifice your dreams and ambitions for love?
She didn’t sacrifice her love and ambitions. Yes, she wanted to travel solo. She wanted to see the world. But can I not do it with you? It’s all about striking a balance. I think there are little, little sacrifices that we all make in our day to day.
Because with age, she is somebody who’s felt like non-permanence is her thing. When you are a traveller, you think nothing is permanent — be it people, be it faces, be it places, be it feelings. And finally, she found home in a person.
I would look at her as somebody who’s very sure of what she wants, whether it is her dreams and her partner and the artist residency, the dream that she has.
As far as I am concerned, I have dreamt big all my life. And I will make sure that nothing comes in the way of my dream.
But again, you don’t know what life has in store for you. You have to be open to life as well as be determined. I’ve always tried to strike that balance.
Sometimes I feel God and life have different plans for you. Most of the time, things don’t really work your way; you just figure as things happen.
So I don’t know what’s in store for me, even as Mahima.
From now on, I think, audiences have given me the liberty and the privilege to dream even bigger. This is all I wanted.
Why do you think Musafir Cafe has connected so strongly with audiences?
All of us have been Preeti, Sudha and Chander at different points in our lives. There is a huge case of relatability.
The fact that people are not simple, all of us are complicated. Life throws different choices at us. We have to choose whatever is important in that moment. Sometimes there are sacrifices that we have to make.
Sometimes we have our hearts broken.
This is a story about self-discovery more than a love story. It is also about the impact people have in our lives.
The fact that people are empathising with Preeti is because they know the pain she’s going through.
People are also seeing themselves in Sudha because people, like especially women, want to do it all, whether it is wanting to be independent, wanting to run a house or wanting to be in love.
Photograph: Kind courtesy Mahima Makwana/Instagram
Do you see Musafir Cafe as a turning point in your career?
It definitely has helped me create that connect and that acceptance with the audiences. You can call it a turning point, but for me, now there are different sorts of turning points that I had in my career.
The biggest one was Antim. That film gave me my transition from television to movies. Then, there was Showtime. I feel anything you do has an effect, whether you see it today or not.
Something or the other leads up to something bigger or better, whether you realise it or not. But I hope Musafir Cafe opens up many, many doors for me.
‘It’s taken me 16 years to come where I am today’
IMAGE: Roopal Tyagi and Mahima Makwana in Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke.
You have been in the industry for over 15 years and started acting at a very young age. What are you most proud of when you look back?
I am proud of the entire journey I’ve had.
It’s taken me 16 years to come where I am today. There’s a lot of patience, persistence, hard work and destiny. I’m proud of the good, bad and ugly, everything because that has made me the person I am today.
I am proud of the daughter that I am.
I am proud of the actor that I’m becoming.
I am proud of the person that I am becoming.
Because I don’t look at it as a professional journey. It has had an impact on me growing up as an individual and as a performer. So I am proud of everything.
My choices that I made as an actor, no matter how unconventional they were, I am proud of everything I did because they gave me something, whether it was in terms of fame or acting or in terms of lessons. I know I have earned it, and I can’t be more proud of myself.
‘There are months and years when you don’t have work’
IMAGE: Emraan Hashmi, Mahima Makwana, Mouni Roy, Rajeev Khandelwal, Shriya Saran in Showtime.
The industry is extremely cut-throat. Did you ever feel that you weren’t getting what you deserved?
The industry is extremely uncertain. You don’t know what your tomorrow looks like. So the gap between two projects does make you question yourself.
They do make you want to give up.
My life depends on this. I don’t have another option.
So, of course, there are days where I feel like things are not going my way and I feel helpless, dejected and rejected. I don’t feel confident. I question myself and my choices.
But then what do you do? You wake up, dust it off and go. That time gives you a reality check that nothing is permanent, whether it is your good time or bad.
As long as you believe in yourself, and as long as you’re at it, you can achieve what you want to. But yes, things can take a long time.
It takes a lot of effort to maintain your sanity in an industry like this because the pressure is such.
But do what you have to do. You cry. You go into your shell, you come out of it.
There are months and years when you don’t have work. But then you don’t give up.
‘My mother taught me to dream big’
IMAGE: Aayush Sharma and Mahim Makwana in Antim: The Final Truth.
Have you ever lost a role or project that you thought was yours?
So many! It taught me that nothing is in your control, and you can’t take it to heart.
They taught me that there is something better waiting for me.
Of course, that feeling is probably the worst in the world but what can you do about it? Because you know that there are thousands of people auditioning or being in the same queue as you.
You have spoken about your humble beginnings. How has your upbringing shaped the person you are today?
I think it made me independent.
The biggest lesson that my mother taught me is that you have to be financially independent. And you have to be grounded.
My mother taught me to dream big.
Whatever we’ve built, we’ve built from scratch. And it’s taken us many, many years to come here.
You were raised by a single mother. What do you remember most about growing up?
I look at my mother as my biggest inspiration. The fact that she’s raised my brother and me single-handedly in Bombay, was tough.
‘I don’t look at it as pressure. I look at it as responsibility’
IMAGE: Mahima Makwana with her mother. Photograph: Kind courtesy Mahima Makwana/Instagram
You started as a child artist. Did you feel you missed out on a regular school life?
No. If I hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t have been where I am today.
We all have choices and sacrifices to deal with. Nobody forced me to do it. I did it myself.
Like I said, I’m proud of the journey that I’ve had. Everything that I’ve missed out on, I can always do it today. I still have time.
But yes, I did not have a regular school life. But I had to do what I did because of the situation I was in. And honestly, I had a lot of fun on set.
And it’s not like I didn’t go to school at all. I would go for exams. I would try and attend school as much as I could, so I don’t feel like I missed out on anything.
Were you the sole breadwinner in your home? Did that ever feel like too much pressure?
I was. No, I don’t look at it as pressure. I look at it as responsibility.
Nothing has been given to me on a platter, so you make the platter yourself.
I guess I’m more mature for my age because life took over.
As they say, fame, money and success often change people in this industry. How do you stay grounded?
I don’t have a lot of yes-men around me.
My upbringing, my family, and my friends are there for me. Because things have not come easy to me, so I know the amount of hard work that has gone into it. I value everything that has come my way, whether it is money, fame or work.
As actors, we don’t know what our next week, next month, next couple of days look like. Reality has taught me that nothing is permanent. That keeps me grounded.
Today, I am the talk of the town. Tomorrow, somebody else will be.
