" I can't play a subservient, wimpy,self-effacing, doormat ! " Manini Mishra

Manini has essayed some of the most interesting and experimental roles on the small screen. We caught up with this pesky actress who plays the ice-block Ramona in Sony's Jeete Hai Jiske Liye. "Ramona is a character that I have never played before.' she commences. "She's extremely bored in life and with everything around her. However, her world is filled with luxury, she's very fashion and comfort conscious. Ramona values money a lot and needs it all the time, for her it's almost everything. She likes to go on vacations to Bahamas and needs her afternoon soirées." Ramona's isn't too kicked about her marriage either, she isn't complacent about her relationship but just plain indifferent, Manini affirms, "My marriage with Ritu Raj is completely dysfunctional; they just seem to disagree on everything. And the marriage is present only for namesake; frankly she does not care a rat ass for anything or anyone." How does Manini react to such a marital situation? "I can't identify with it at all, I am sensitive, curious about everything and always exited in life. Ramona is completely opposite; thankfully I am in a perfectly functional marriage with a perfectly functional husband!" Aadira bua aka Ashwini Kalsekar has helped in bringing up the children; are you going to also have a grey maternal side in the show? "I have done my indulgent bit of spoiling them. There's nothing maternal possible for Ramona." What about her own child? Wasn't Ramona pregnant before the leap? "Yes, and by now she would have a 20 year old kid, but I do not know the situation as the production house and channel has to take the decision. As I get to know about the child,I will tell you!" Will we see Ramona in a changed avatar after the leap? Rumours were that Manini refused to grey her hair, "It's true. I insisted that I will not grey and they did not expect me to grey my hair either. I don't think mothers today have grey hair; they are often swankier than their kids. I am a mother; do I look like the archetypal Nirupa Roy? Anyway whose mother today looks like Nirupa Roy? " So, the essence of the character will remain the same, except that Ramona will grow to be more self conserving and opportunistic. She will turn more destructive but in a sly surreptitious way." However, we have observed that even though Ramona has a strong negative shade, she does not turn tables on Aadira. Aadira on the other hand does a very good job at keeping Ramona in tow, "Aadira has brought us up, so there is a strong bond between the two. I don't think she will break away, they are very similar and Ramona being high and mighty doesn't resent Aadira's middle class mentality. Ramona is influenced by her and listens to her." Manini has not been doing too may shows, she just can't bear the saas-bahu dramas. But then even the serials that she's doing are not too close to reality? "Not quite and I think it's about time we get real! I often voice it to the producer-directors and the creative people when they tell me that 'Real' doesn't sell! Please don't give me that, a Kadam, Koshish…Ek Asha can do well then the audience will also like to watch stories which are close to reality. I don't undermine soaps but I can't play a subservient, wimpy, self-effacing, doormat!" So, what is her kind of genre? Serious, comic or the spine chillers? "I am the X-Files Grey's Anatomy kinda girl, I am waiting for the time we have this interesting stuff on Indian TV screens," she signs off. We salute the actress with her grit to pass through the mindless grind of warped serials day in and day out, only because her sensibilities rate higher than the IQ of most of her TV contemporaries!