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Auditions will always exist, even if you’re a fairly established actress: Preity Mukhundhan
For Preity Mukhundhan, 2026 has been nothing short of a blast- quite literally! Blast, her first release of the year and her first female-centric film, turned out to be a sleeper hit and one of the year’s highest-grossing films. Idhayam Murali saw her pull off her first dual role, while the recent Anbil Avan gave her what she calls “the most challenging role I’ve done so far”. Next up, she’s pairing up with Dhanush in Lubber Pandhu director Tamizharasan Pachamuthu’s upcoming film. In an interview with us, the actress talks about how she picks roles, why she prefers auditioning and working across multiple industries. Excerpts:What are the factors you look for when choosing a film?For me, the first factor is the director. I listen to their narration and decide based on how they speak about the story and how they approach the script. If the narration is really good, I may know even before the interval whether I want to do the film. That’s what happened with Blast. Also, if the hero or the production house has a good eye for scripts and consistently chooses good stories, or if they make sure the heroine has good space, that gives me trust and confidence.
I do want to do lead roles, but what matters more to me is the story and the impact the character has within it. When I hear the story, I look at what this character brings to it
Preity Mukhundhan
What about the role itself?I don’t expect the role to be of a certain length. I do want to do lead roles, but what matters more to me is the story and the impact the character has within it. When I hear the story, I look at what this character brings to it.How did you develop this judgement, and has it evolved over time?In the initial stages, I often got my judgement wrong. I’m quite introvert- ed. When I started out, I’d go to a set, speak only to the director, do what I had to do and leave. I gradually learnt through experience. I also started watching a lot more films. Now, if I’m going to meet a director, I’ll watch their previous film and observe their approach. I look at how they have presented things. Then, I use all of that along with the script to make my judgement.We heard you didn’t hear the full script of Anbil Avan before saying yes. How did you make that decision?Some filmmakers may not tell you the whole story, especially when approaching actresses. There were films I did where even I didn’t know the entire story. I would know only the context of my character and the scenes I had to do. With this film, they explained the main premise and then gave me the con- text for my character and the audition scene. It was one of the most emotionally intense moments between the two characters in the film. The scene was written extremely well, and I could immediately tell that the woman had been given a solid character. The way a character is written tells you a lot.
I haven’t noticed a huge difference between industries based purely on the industry. It varies more from filmmaker to filmmaker, script to script and project to project
Preity Mukhundhan
What drew you to this role in Anbil Avan?This was personally the most challenging role I’ve done so far, mainly because of its intensity. The character, a young woman, who is in the early stages of marriage, had an arc, room to evolve, and a lot of intensity. There was action as well, but more survivalistic. Performing those scenes was challenging. In general, the entire film had a very intense emotional core. Playing such a mature role was challenging. Has your preparation for roles changed with experience? Yes. As I’ve slowly established myself and have had a few releases, I feel the audience has a certain level of trust that I will do different kinds of films. So, I want to spend more time with each role and character. My mindset has shifted to- wards doing fewer films but increasing the quality of the work.At this stage of your career, you probably get offered many roles with romantic tracks. How do you know when the chemistry with a co-star is working?If you’re both being natural, the chemistry automatically comes through. In this film, Ashok and I developed a very natu- ral friendship. I could have very effortless conversations, and that’s why when we were on screen, the chemistry felt like that of a husband and wife who had known each other for many years.You’re now working across multiple industries, including Hindi. Do you notice differences in the way each industry works?I haven’t noticed a huge difference based purely on the industry. I think it varies more from filmmaker to filmmaker, script to script and project to project.’I don’t expect to be exempt from auditions; I even ask directors if they want me to audition’While she’s acted in 10-plus films so far, Preity says she considers auditioning for a role to be the norm even now. “Sometimes filmmakers need to see an actor in that particular look or see how they perform before they can decide whether the person fits the role. So, I don’t expect to be exempt from auditions. I even ask the director if they want me to audition. It also gives the filmmaker confidence when they see the performance. I recently auditioned for Dhanush sir’s film as well. Auditions will always exist, even if you’re a fairly established actress,” she shares.
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