Mirzapur actor Anangsha Biswas recalls getting vulgar, disturbing messages after Season 1: 'I was shaken'

Anangsha Biswas on Unwanted Attention After Mirzapur Season 1

Anangsha Biswas, known for playing the ambitious and morally grey Zarina in the popular series Mirzapur, has revealed that her role brought not just appreciation but also an uncomfortable amount of unwanted attention. Speaking to Hindi Rush, Biswas shared that after the first season premiered, she began receiving comments, strange emails, and social media messages from strangers who seemed to confuse her on-screen persona with her real-life identity.

"After Season 1, I was very disturbed because it was all very new to me," she said in Hindi. "There were comments, strange emails and people commenting on my social media, with the same kind of words being used everywhere. I was a little shaken. I thought my work was my Saraswati and I had done it with complete dedication, so why were people saying these things."

The messages, she said, became increasingly explicit. Some people asked how much she would charge for a night, or invited her on trips. "People asked, 'How much would you charge for one night? Come with us to Mauritius for two days, for a weekend,'" she recalled, adding that such messages filled her inbox.

Biswas said the experience made her question why viewers were unable to separate an actor from the character they portray. She emphasised that this mindset needs to change, particularly when actors play bold or grey characters. For her, Zarina was a performance, not a reflection of her personal life.

The Character of Zarina

Zarina was written as a woman who understood how to use her sexuality and influence to navigate Mirzapur's brutal political world. Biswas's portrayal made the character instantly recognisable, but the attention also exposed a familiar problem faced by actors playing sexually charged roles. The actor's experience highlights the line between appreciating a fictional character and treating the performer as an extension of that character.

Mirzapur: The Movie

Biswas will reprise her role as Zarina in Mirzapur: The Movie, which expands the popular Prime Video franchise onto the big screen. Pankaj Tripathi, Ali Fazal, Divyenndu and Rasika Dugal return as their iconic characters, while Jitendra Kumar will portray the character of Bablu Pandit, originally played by Vikrant Massey.

The film continues the story from Season 1 of the series. At the film's trailer launch, co-producer Farhan Akhtar said the movie was the result of fans' demand, as people repeatedly asked when Mirzapur would return.