Girl’s gotta go everywhere

Dalai

A month since Big Girls Don't Cry began streaming on Prime Video, Dalai - who played the role of Pluggy in the YA show set in a boarding school - is thrilled that people have praised her performance. "People have found my performance authentic. For someone who doesn't belong to that age group and has never been to a boarding school, this kind of reaction is a high," beams the actor, 25.

She knew she wanted to be on celluloid right from her early years when she played Madhuri Dixit-Nene's daughter in Aaja Nachle (2007). After working as a set dresser on Phillauri (2017) and Hichki (2018), she doubled up as an actor and assistant director to Nitya Mehra on Made in Heaven (2019). Five years on, she says she was drawn to Mehra's Big Girls Don't Cry for its female-first approach.

"We were leads in the show and all the men played the love interests, fathers, brothers and so on. Since you are often cast as the sister, daughter, or love interest, this role reversal was exciting," she reasons. Up next, Dalai will feature in a web series, and a film set in Goa. She will juggle acting with screenwriting. "For now, I'm writing two projects. Both are female-led subjects. I'm focusing on writing when I'm not acting. I will also explore direction when I feel more capable."