'Ramayana' actor Sonia Balani says playing Urmila was 'beyond my imagination'

'Ramayana' actor Sonia Balani says playing Urmila was 'beyond my imagination' and reveals she first auditioned for Soorpanakha: 'She never wanted to be the main character in her own story'

Sonia Balani, who plays Urmila in Nitesh Tiwari’s ‘Ramayana: Rise of a Legend’, has opened up about preparing for the role and working with the film’s cast. In a recent conversation, she shared that she had first auditioned for Soorpanakha, but was finalised for Urmila within a day.

Why Urmila’s story stayed with Sonia Balani

Urmila is one of the lesser-explored characters of the epic. While her husband, Lakshman, went into exile with Lord Rama and Goddess Sita, she stayed behind and quietly accepted a long separation. It was this side of the story that drew Sonia in while preparing for the role.

Auditioned for Soorpanakha, cast as Urmila

In an interview with India Today, Sonia Balani said she found Soorpanakha the more interesting character at first, but fate had other plans. “As an actor, I have always felt there’s so much you can do with grey characters.

You can play around with your eyes, expressions and explore so much. But when I started preparing for Urmila, I was really happy, and I genuinely feel fortunate that I got to essay her on screen,” she said.

Understanding a sacrifice

Sonia Balani said understanding Urmila was the most interesting part of her preparation. She admitted she knew little about the character at first, and she is still trying to understand how Urmila let Lakshman leave to accompany Ram and Sita.

“It’s one of the biggest sacrifices that we have known about. Being a woman of today’s generation, it’s beyond my imagination. I am yet to fathom how she found that strength. I just can’t imagine anyone making such a big sacrifice, that too, right after getting married,” the actor said.

Working with Nitesh Tiwari and Sai Pallavi

Calling Nitesh Tiwari one of her favourite directors, Sonia Balani said she often used the breaks between shots to learn from him. She is currently writing a short film that she plans to direct next month, so their conversations went beyond ‘Ramayana’.She also found a friend in Sai Pallavi, who plays Sita. After sharing several scenes with her, Sonia said Pallavi’s warmth made her feel she had an elder sister around. “She would guide all of us. I think she already has a very Sita-like vibe. She’s very grounded, calm, sweet and sisterly. Maybe that’s why she always seemed like an elder sister to me throughout,” Sonia said with a smile.

The most organised set

A production of this scale usually comes with some madness, but Sonia said this one was the opposite.

She called it the most organised set she has worked on, and said the calm helped her slip into the world of the epic.“There was no chaos at all. Usually, there are so many things happening simultaneously, especially on TV sets. Hair, makeup, lights and spots. But here, everything was so well-planned that there was a sense of calm on set. Maybe because of the costumes, we felt transported to that era. Nitesh sir is also so calm, and that translated to every single person on set,” she said.

Screen time was never a worry

Sonia said she never worried about how much screen time Urmila would get, or whether the character would stand out in a film with some of the biggest names in the industry. For her, working with Tiwari and being part of an epic was reason enough.

Her takeaway from playing Urmila

Sonia was struck by how Urmila made her sacrifices without seeking recognition or wanting to be celebrated for them.“I feel she made every sacrifice with a smile on her face, and she never wanted to be the main character in her own story.

That’s really my takeaway. Sometimes, it’s okay to be part of something big and be happy with what you have done. You have done it with your best intentions and the best energy. Sometimes, it’s about greater things that we can’t see right in the moment,” she said.

Costumes and a break from television

Having spent years on television, Sonia was at first nervous about wearing heavy lehengas and jewellery for long hours. She said she enjoyed the transformation more than she expected. She also spoke about stepping away from television to explore different characters and roles.

About ‘Ramayana: Rise of a Legend’

The film stars Ranbir Kapoor, Sai Pallavi, Yash and Ravie Dubey, among others. It released in theatres on November 5.