'Mirzapur: The Film' is going to be quite explosive: Shweta Tripathi

New Delhi: Actor Shweta Tripathi has teased that "Mirzapur: The Film" will be quite "explosive" with an unfiltered tone that won't shy away from holding a mirror to society over issues like crime and violence.

The movie, which will be released in 2026, is the cinematic extension of the "Mirzapur" series and will delve more into fan-favourite characters like Kaleen Bhaiya, Guddu Pandit, and Munna Tripathi.

"I think it's going to be quite explosive. It's being written right now and we're slowly finding out what's happening. But, I think, it is not going to be sanitised. I'm guessing it will be an adult film and I think we should be able to show what's happening (in society)," Tripathi, who plays Gajgamini Gupta aka Golu in "Mirzapur", told PTI in an interview.

Over the course of three seasons, "Mirzapur" has attained massive fandom as well as praise for showcasing a gritty and violent world where power, crime, and human struggles are depicted with unflinching realism.

The actor said she believes in a kind of storytelling that doesn’t shy away from highlighting societal issues, even if it makes viewers uncomfortable.

"When people close their eyes and become uncomfortable, then they should feel that because every time we turn our heads and not acknowledge that, it doesn't stop from happening. We have become so desensitised," she said.

Produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani under Excel Entertainment, "Mirzapur: The Film" will bring back Pankaj Tripathi as Kaleen Bhaiya, Ali Fazal as Guddu Pandit, and Divyenndu as Munna Tripathi, despite Munna’s death in the second season of the show.

The backbone of any successful show is writing and that holds true for "Mirzapur", said Tripathi, who believes that the series challenges the idea of inherently "bad" people.

"What I love about the characters is that nobody is born evil. And I'm saying this because I understood this from Munna's character, not even mine. He wanted his father's love and validation because he didn't get that, he took out all his anger and frustration on other people.

"So we enable people, we make them monsters. We push them to a corner that when they retaliate, we say what a bad person he is. But all of us are a part of it,” she said.

She credits the show's co-writer Puneet Krishna and director Gurmeet Singh for crafting relatable characters in the show.

"People didn't judge them, I think that really worked... I come from a family who have given me a lot of love and have encouraged my dreams a lot. Poor Golu's life is very dark. It is isolated to a large extent and is driven by revenge."

Tripathi revealed that playing the character of Golu over the course of three seasons took a toll on her mental health and she had to seek therapy to deal with it.

"During the second season, Golu was driven by so much anger and revenge due to events that happened in her life. Her entire life changed, it was all about survival… So Golu took over me and it took time to realise that.

"When I talked to Divyendu, he told me that Munna stayed with him even after the shoot. And that's when I realised that it has happened to me as well."

When she started the shoot for season three, the actor thought she would be able to tackle the character’s impact on her but she failed.

"It was almost like a shadow. It takes over your entire being and I had to take therapy. My therapist told me, 'You psych yourself so much to get into the character. What do you do to get out of it?' That's equally important.

"They asked me to listen to my favourite songs. For example, I like wearing accessories, I like wearing colour but during the shoot I left all of that. I used to just wear jeans and a shirt, that's it. The hair was also chopped and the way we look, it does make a difference. But now for season four, I will be even more careful."

As an actor, Tripathi believes that she has a duty to raise her voice on important issues. One cause that’s really close to her is speaking about climate change through her work.

People are very much "lost in our bubble", she added.

"Nature keeps giving us and I feel we are exploiting it. When you see the construction going on everywhere you go, it breaks my heart. Nature is forever giving but what are we doing with it. We are so busy in our lives.”

Tripathi currently stars in the Netflix series "Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein", which recently returned with its second season.

Also starring Tahir Raj Bhasin and Anchal Singh, the romantic thriller show has been praised by the critics for its story, twists, thrills and performance of the lead cast.

Inputs from PTI.